Cisgender man to act Transgender in Mark Ruffalo film

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GLAAD's Nick Adams argues that Hollywood needs to let go of the idea "that putting a male actor in a dress, wig and makeup is an accurate portrayal of a transgender woman."

It’s been two years since Time magazine proclaimed a new era of inclusion in America with a May 2014 cover featuring actress Laverne Cox and the eye-catching headline: “The Transgender Tipping Point.” The groundbreaking Time cover came 10 months after Cox appeared in her breakout role as Sophia Burset on Netflix's Orange Is the New Black. That's the power of entertainment media — one outstanding performance by a charismatic and talented actress can accelerate change across an entire culture.

Since then, trans people have begun to appear on reality shows like TLC's I Am Jazz, E!'s I Am Cait, and in Strut, Oxygen's upcoming show about trans models. Trans characters played by trans actors are beginning to appear in scripted TV shows like Amazon's Transparent, Netflix'sSense8, Freeform's The Fosters, and CBS' upcoming legal drama Doubt. And Tangerine, starring two trans actresses, was the indie film breakout hit of 2015, earning four Independent Spirit Award nominations and a GLAAD Media Award for outstanding film in limited release.

And yet — in spite of the critical and commercial success of projects that put trans people front and center — Hollywood is having a very difficult time letting go of the idea that putting a male actor in a dress, wig and makeup is an accurate portrayal of a transgender woman.

For more than 40 years, Americans have sat down in front of their TV screens or in movie seats and seen male actors "pretend" to be trans women. By casting Robert Reed, Terence Stamp, John Lithgow, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Tom Wilkinson, Lee Pace, Cillian Murphy, Liev Schreiber, Beau Bridges, Jared Leto, Eddie Redmayne, Steven Weber, Denis O'Hare and Walton Goggins as transgender women, viewers receive two strong and wrong messages: 1. that being transgender is an act, a performance, just a matter of playing dress-up; and 2. that underneath all that artifice, a transgender woman really is a man.

Matt Bomer is the latest actor to find himself in the crosshairs of controversy, following news this week that he will be playing a transgender woman in the upcoming indie film Anything, executive produced by Mark Ruffalo. Following the film's announcement, Emmy-nominated trans filmmaker and actress Jen Richards responded with a series of tweets that re-ignited a long-simmering conversation about casting transgender roles.

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The decision to put yet another man in a dress to portray a transgender woman touches a nerve for transgender people, and rightfully so. It's yet another painful reminder that, in the eyes of so many people, transgender women are really just men.

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When you hire a trans actor, they don't have to spend weeks or months "preparing and researching" to play a trans person. They can walk in the door on day one, ready to deliver an authentic, nuanced performance. You get the added bonus of having someone on set who can tell you if something about the dialogue or the characterization is falling into tropes and clichés that will ultimately not reflect well on you or the project. (You can also call GLAAD for that feedback. We want to help you get it right from the beginning.)

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The actors I've mentioned in this article are trained, professional, and experienced. You can find them on Actors Access and IMDb. If you can't find them, call us and we'll help you find them.

Bring them in to audition. Let them show you their craft. Create a role specifically for them. Listen to their stories and be inspired. The reality of lived trans experience is so much more interesting, so much more powerful, than the simulacrum Hollywood has peddled for decades. Collaborate with us to tell our own stories. You’ll not only make better films and TV shows, you’ll also make a difference.

Full piece: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/matt-bomer-transgender-movie-anything-guest-column-925170

[exoskeleton35 646]

It's ACTING. 

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[Guest]

It's acting. Anyone can play any role, they just have to take on the characteristics of whoever they are playing. Actors are not required to have had life experiences similar to their character's.

That's the whole point of acting: To put yourself in another person's shoes and be someone else...not yourself.

[JDi 1,495]

please close this and smarten up.

[gag 22,449]

Trans filmmakers and actors have openly opposed it, if they don't feel comfortable with a cisgender man portraying them... that says something.

[FATCAT 60,101]

Acting is just that, an act. As long as he fits with the role, and the person he's pretending to be, it doesn't matter.

I support both Mark and the trans community.

[Guest]

Why would it be offensive for a cisgender male to play a transgender woman? Honestly, I don't understand. No offense intended, I'm just confused about why people are upset about this.

[Klonoa 2,194]

So no more women in films, men actors can act as women. "act is act". No more animais, no more plants, just actors. That's what you people are implying.

[ryhanna 3,507]

I understand that proper representation is important, but like, I just want a good performance. If actors like Laverne Cox and Jamie Clayton (first transgender actors to spring to mind) can deliver solid performances, then great, give them a fair shot! 

[FATCAT 60,101]

2 minutes ago, Slade said:

Why would it be offensive for a cisgender male to play a transgender woman? Honestly, I don't understand. No offense intended, I'm just confused about why people are upset about this.

I'm trying to wrap my head around it as well. I could see an outcry if he was a bigot or something, but he has shown nothing but love for the trans community as far as I know.

[PartySick 161,084]

11 minutes ago, Lion Heart said:

viewers receive two strong and wrong messages: 1. that being transgender is an act, a performance, just a matter of playing dress-up; and 2. that underneath all that artifice, a transgender woman really is a man.

I don't know about all that...just seems like poor casting to me, not an assault on the validity of trans people. I don't feel assaulted when they have a straight person playing a gay person or a white person playing Michael Jackson circa early 2000's...I know they're different, just saying. I support people voicing their feelings on it though. There's nothing wrong with the discussion

My opinion though? They should get a woman to play a woman, trans or not. It's that simple.

[FATCAT 60,101]

2 minutes ago, Akarin said:

So no more women in films, men actors can act as women. "act is act". No more animais, no more plants, just actors. That's what you people are implying.

I'm sorry, what? How does that parallel with this at all? 

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5 minutes ago, Akarin said:

So no more women in films, men actors can act as women. "act is act". No more animais, no more plants, just actors. That's what you people are implying.

What are you even talking about

[Guest]

2 minutes ago, Akarin said:

So no more women in films, men actors can act as women. "act is act". No more animais, no more plants, just actors. That's what you people are implying.

I don't think that's what anyone is implying, we're just confused as to why it's such an issue when it's an actor portraying a character. I think there would be an upset if they had cast a cisgender woman as well