One of HBO’s prestigious series, Euphoria, is currently in a bit of danger because filming had to be postponed, and the actors are (hopefully only temporarily) left to take on other projects in the meantime. Zendaya and Sydney Sweeney, as well as Hunter Schafer, owe a lot to this series. For Schafer, Euphoria was additionally useful, because as a transgender actress she could show something of the conflicts she herself experienced. However, Schafer by no means wants to remain in the “transgender box” in the future, like this one GQexplained in an interview with
Although the actress considers it important to accept where she came from and where she got to, especially since transphobic laws were also introduced in her home state of North Carolina. At the same time, she would like her profession to reach the point where roles are not offered to her based on her gender and sexual identity. According to her, she even tries to avoid saying the word “transgender” in interviews.
“As soon as I say it, all hell breaks loose. It’s taken me a while to learn that, and that I don’t want to be reduced to that. I find it incredibly demeaning to myself and everything I want to do in the future. Especially after high school, I resented to talk about it. Even through the really hard times of my transition, I’ve worked pretty hard to get to where I am now. I’m done with that, I just want to be a girl and continue my life like that. […]
I’ve been offered a bunch of trans roles, but I just don’t want to do them. I don’t even want to talk about that. […] I know, of course, that I am currently one of the most famous transgender stars in the media, which is why I feel a certain sense of responsibility on my shoulders, maybe even a little guilty about not making my voice heard more. At the same time, in the end, I really believe that by not building my career around that, I can go much further. And I think that moving on and doing wonderful things serves the ‘movement’ much more than talking about it all the time,” explained the actress.
Schafer also told GQ that she doesn’t really care anymore when people don’t like her just because of her gender identity or where she comes from (because she was born a boy biologically, but realized she was a girl spiritually). “I’m no longer interested in creating a kind of utopia around myself. I’m completely at peace with some people hating me because I’m transgender, or being called a man. I’m not really into trying to convince anyone – as long as everyone remains within its own boundaries. Work. Work! Deal with it! I’m surrounded by people there that I love,” Schafer said.
Hunter Schafer was last seen in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, but he has a few more upcoming projects, such as Giórgosz Lánthimosz’s new film, Kind of Kindness, which opens overseas in June.
