- Written by Stephen McIntosh
- Entertainment reporter
Image source, Getty Images
Hunter Schafer starred in the Euphoria and Hunger Games prequel The Ballad Of Songbirds & Snakes
Trance actress Hunter Schiffer has said she no longer wants to play transgender roles.
The 25-year-old transgender star is best known for playing transgender character, Jules Vaughn, on the hit HBO teen drama.
But Schiffer said she felt she could move forward as an actor by “not making it the center of what I do.”
“I've worked so hard to get where I am now, and get through these really tough points in my transition, and now I just want to be a girl and finally move on,” she said.
In an interview with GQ magazine, Schiffer said that being known simply as a “trans actress” was “ultimately an insult to me and what I want to do.”
She continued: “I've been offered a lot of trans roles, and I don't want to do that. I don't want to talk about it.”
“I know for sure that I'm one of the most famous trans people in the media right now, and I feel a sense of responsibility, and maybe a little guilt, that I haven't been a spokesperson.
“But in the end, I really believe that not making it the center of what I do will allow me to move forward.
“And I think moving forward and doing a great job [work]“For the sake of the movement, it would be much more beneficial than talking about it all the time.”
Eddie Redmayne was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as a transgender character in the 2015 film The Danish Girl
There has been a long-standing debate in Hollywood over representation in casting, with many in the transgender community arguing that trans characters should be played by trans actors in real life.
Some actors have apologized or expressed remorse for taking on trans roles in the past. In 2021, Eddie Redmayne said of his casting in 2015's The Danish Girl: “I made this movie with the best intentions, but I think it was a mistake.”
Others have argued that the concept of acting is about becoming someone else, and that it would be too restrictive to only play roles with characteristics shared by the actor.
Schiffer starred alongside Zendaya, Jacob Elordi and Sidney Sweeney in the gritty, Emmy Award-winning drama Euphoria, which is set to return for a third season.
She also recently starred in the Hunger Games prequel The Ballad Of Songbirds & Snakes, and will lead the upcoming psychological thriller Cuckoo.
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