Miss Benny, the lead in the Netflix series Glamorous, has publicly come out as transgender.
Also known for her role in American Horror Story, she poured her heart out in a candid personal essay for Time, calling herself a "proud person" despite admitting the public declaration to be "a bit daunting."
In her narrative, Miss Benny talked about her conservative upbringing in Texas where "queerness was totally not the vibe."
However, from the early age of eight, she found herself yearning to be more like her sisters. At the age of 14, she moved to LA from Texas to kickstart her acting career. However, as Miss Benny recounts, "I instead endured years of rejection in auditions because it 'wasn’t time for someone like me'. I entered relationships where my femininity was subject for negotiation."
Things took a turn when she got a call for an audition for Glamorous at the age of 19. Miss Benny describes this moment: "They told me in the room that the role of Marco was mine, and I fell to my knees with tears in my eyes. This was the first time in my life somebody looked at me and said, 'Yes, it’s time for you'."
However, her journey was far from smooth. With the show facing an uncertain future at its original network and the onset of the pandemic, Miss Benny was grappling with intense gender dysphoria.
During this challenging period, she began to transition privately, and as she puts it, "It felt as if I had lived with a stuffy nose my whole life and then suddenly my breathing airways opened, and I discovered everybody else has been breathing freely the whole time."
When Netflix eventually decided to pick up Glamorous, there was a chance to incorporate her personal journey into her character Marco's arc. For her, it was crucial that Marco's trans-ness was not the main plot or a surprise twist, but instead, it was about seeing "a young queer person experiencing first love and heartbreak, career success and failure, and everything else that comes with being a young adult… while also discovering their identity in the background of life."
Reflecting on the current political climate surrounding trans people, Miss Benny spoke about the importance of representation on screen: "I am reminded that this fear is exactly why I wanted to include my transition in the show – because I know that when I was a terrified queer kid in Texas, it was the queer joy I found in droplets online that guided me to my happiness."
She hopes that others feeling marginalized can find solace in watching someone like her "thrive and be celebrated."
The up-and-coming actress went on to praise trans trailblazers such as Elliot Page, Gigi Goode, Isis King, Dylan Mulvaney, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Kim Petras, Chiquitita, Tommy Dorfman, and Josie Totah.
Netflix's Glamorous is available for streaming now.
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