Let’s talk “transface”.
About two years ago, Scarlett Johansson, a well-known Jewish actress, was cast as Major Motoko Kusanagi in the live-action remake of Ghost in the Shell. Despite the movie ending up being mediocre, the backlash surrounding her decision to play an Asian character was so poorly-received that it marred her credibility. I even wrote three separate pieces on Infinite Rainy Day preceding its release, as well as an emergency blog on The Whitly-Verse and a follow-up post-release. It may seem like overkill, but the disturbingly-racist undertones of the whole ordeal, as well as how it was handled, really warranted introspection.
I wish that was the end of it, but director Rupert Sanders and Johansson herself haven’t learned from this debacle. It was recently announced that the two would team up again, this time in a biopic where Johansson would play a transgender man. As if that wasn’t bad enough, her defence of the decision involved bringing up Jeffrey Tambor, who’d played a transgender woman in the show Transparent. And yes, this is the same Jeffrey Tambor who wound up in trouble when it was revealed that he’d sexually-harassed his transgender assistant. Cue the disappointment.
I know some of you don’t understand why this is a problem; after all, a few probably think that calling someone a “trap” isn’t a big deal. Besides, it’s acting! None of this is real! If Johansson’s job is to be a mimic, then why can’t she play a trans man? It’s not like she’s taking on another race, right? Right?!
It’s an open secret that Hollywood, the outward bastion of “progress”, isn’t the best at marginalized representation. Whether it’s romanticizing minorities, constantly reusing the “white saviour” trope, or simply miscasting roles, there’s a long-standing tradition of “getting it wrong”, often deliberately, in an attempt to appeal to “the majority culture” that watches films. It’s baked into the industry’s DNA, and I don’t see it going away despite it not being as prevalent as it used to be. The issue of binary, or “cis”, people playing trans parts, or transface, is another log in the fire of Hollywood’s discriminatory practices.
Some facts: according to a 2016 study, roughly anywhere from .5-3% of the population identify as transgender in the US. The number has grown since then, but in a population of over 300 million, that’s a lot of people. Trans individuals are also routinely the victims of hate crimes and violence, including murder, rape, sexual assault, persecution and laws like the infamous bathroom bills. That alone is cause for concern.
This doesn’t even account for how trans people are portrayed in media. Ignoring the aforementioned bathroom bills, trans individuals are often either the punchline of a joke, like in The Crying Game and 2oolander, or played by cis people. It’s the latter that’s responsible for Johansson’s backlash: if someone would get crap for playing a character whose race doesn’t match theirs, then why shouldn’t they get crap for playing a character whose gender identity doesn’t match theirs?
This is the bind trans actors and actresses are in every day. According to Ranker, there are many trans people working in entertainment. It’s not like film and TV don’t attract colourful characters of all kinds anyway, so…why not give trans people more opportunities? To-date, the only trans woman I know of (who wasn’t even trans anyway) to have a big role in a movie was Jaye Davidson, who played Dil in The Crying Game. But even then, she was a needy love-interest whose transness was a punchline. That I can’t think of trans men off-hand is also pretty telling.
It doesn’t help that cis people playing trans parts lead to the stereotype of transness as “a choice” that can be turned off, inciting further violence against trans people in real-life. (Yes, it does actually happen.) Because let’s not pretend that films can’t have real-world reverberations. Especially when Ordinary People, the 1980 Best Picture winner at The Oscars, helped destigmatize depression. Or when Black Panther became such a hit at the box-office that it prompted producer Kevin Feige to take note. And those are only two examples!
I recognize that I’m not the authority on this matter, being a cis man myself. But I do recognize that, as a cis man, I have more privilege than many trans people because “I’m not biased to the cause” (whatever that means.) Since I have that privilege, I figure I might as well use it to help those less-fortunate. Arguing for proper representation isn’t me being “an SJW shill” either: it leads to better writing, a wider net for audiences that don’t normally see movies and more money for execs. And don’t studio execs love money?
Yes, acting is tough. And subjective. And you’ll never 100% get everything right. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try. Especially if Hollywood’s made progress in so many other fields.
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