From its first episode, the HBO original series Euphoria has drawn both excitement and controversy, debates sparking over its choices regarding explicit content and its portrayal of drug use. I said to them, Look, I have a long career of doing this work. In between seasons one and two, Euphoria put out two special episodes, one focusing on Jules and one on Rue. Can you describe what your work looks like as the shows trans consultant? Shes introduced as Jules, not as the trans girl, but just a new girl who happens to be transgender. Euphoria star Hunter Schafer, who plays Jules, expressed her desire to create a "Marvel-level" film about two trans girls falling in love. Srishti Bungle is a junior at the College of Arts and Science majoring in history and minoring in creative writing and politics. This is fuelled by a glaring absence of diversity in writers and creative directors. When we see Jules in the series, she is a trans woman already comfortable in her gender identity. But we cannot limit representation to those in front of the camera. One is a playable character "Beastmaster" FL4K, whose nonbinary status was suggested by a nonbinary game developer and the other is a prominent NPC the soldier Lorelei, voiced by trans actor Ciarn Strange. Also, the show could better about sexual representation. Your email address will not be published. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. Lets hope Euphoria moves forward to highlight how the new generations anticipate and welcome trans individuals into society. They are not mentioned once. Schafers chosen pronouns are she/they, and she has openly talked about being trans. Euphoria is one of the most popular shows around right now and the character of Jules has become a cultural icon for trans teenagers and transgender youth. In an uncharacteristically safe move for Soloway, Josh balks at following through with a sexual relationship after finding out Shea is HIV-positive. Under the current guidelines of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, hormone replacement therapy is reserved for children 16 and older, while puberty blockers are typically used for those under 16. Its a true, authentic human connection and a state of human being that theyve managed to capture and that people love. And the thing is, like the self-harming isnt about Jules being trans, except that of course it is. And as such, the characters are never boxed into stereotypesthey are allowed to just be. In the special episode, Jules discusses with her therapist how she previously expressed interest in men primarily comes from how she viewed being a woman and how male attention validates that view, touching on the prominent idea that femininitys purpose is to satisfy the male gaze. Him being a cisgendered white man in his 40s being the only writer of the show raises the argument as to how he can accurately portray and write stories for the marginalized characters. But more than anything, it focuses on family and what that means when you get to pick . Almost every episode was followed by a lengthy discussion across social media platforms. She made her acting debut as transgender high school student Jules Vaughn in the HBO teen drama television series Euphoria (2019-present), which earned her critical praise and nominations for a Shorty . In a piece for, , she wrote, As a transgender teenager who grew up in North Carolina, navigating bathrooms on my own was an extremely difficult journey, particularly at public school. Read on to get the full details on this fan-favorites backstory and find out when her gender identity is revealed. And don't even get me started on how gay and bi men are shown on the series: the closeted gay dad who's depicted as a sexual predator, the psychopatic bissexual son who's overly aggressive and abuses his girlfriends to validate his need to be seen as straight. Their powers combined made my job really easy in that regard. The second-best part of "Euphoria" is Schafer as Julesa young trans woman playing a young trans woman. Shes in a mental institution for self harm. Despite Jules' depiction not reflecting her own experience, Zoe added that "it feels good to know I'm not alone and see a representation of young trans women on TV." Euphoria Season 1 is . . Amid gut-wrenching scenes of overdoses and withdrawals is a take on sexual orientation and power dynamics that becomes more questionable as the episodes go on. Levinson is a heterosexual white man in his 40s and it shows. For instance, theres an intimate scene between [Quintessas character, Anna] and [Schafers character, Jules] in episode 7 that was a collaboration with the intimacy coordinator. Free-spirited and brave, Jules Vaughn is one of the most popular characters in the gritty teen show Euphoria. Bella Hadid Is the Blondest Shes Ever Been in New TikTok Video. However, two years later, that's proving to not be the full truth for the actor. Jules started transitioning when she was 13 years old. July 7, 2019 8:00pm. Your email address will not be published. The first time looking in the mirror to admire your new appearance and truly see yourself is a moment of supreme happiness to many trans people. Please log in to add your commentNeed an account? Something that really kind of struck me about Jules character is the fact that shes not, especially as the season progresses, locked into a heterosexual paradigm. The young persons guide to conquering (and saving) the world. I had to work really carefully with their costumes and the head of wardrobe; we wanted to make sure that Quintessa felt really seen as non-binary person. And one million people are watching. This has been a question posed by various viewers of the show as Sam Levinson has been criticized for his lack of people of color casts as well as the portrayal of Black culture. Still, it's dispiriting that, when it comes to representation, we see . Register *It's free and easy. hbo. Editorial: The New York Times article on Maitland Jones was incomplete. Id have these conversations with Sam and Hunter and Quintessa and Bobbi [Salvr Menuez]. The typical narrative element of transgender representation in thrillers is that these characters are framed through the pathologizing lens of criminal deviance: just as popular as the comic image of the "man in a dress" is the trans killer, popularized by movies such as Psycho, Dressed to Kill, and the Oscar-winning The Silence of the Lambs. Orange is the New Black (2013-2019) Netflix. Queerty is a trademark of Q.Digital, Inc., registered in the state of California. If you want to objectify me, objectify me. Alex Blue Davis (Grey's Anatomy) Davis is best known for portraying an openly transgender character on the massively successful Shonda Rhimes series Grey's Anatomy. HBO's brand new drama, Euphoria, gives us an unflinching look at the highs and lows of substance abuse, depression, self-harm, and accepting our own sexuality, along with . Since its debut on HBO in June, "Euphoria" has provoked conversations around teen sexuality, trans representation, full-frontal male nudity, and One Direction slash fiction, to name just a few . Newly sober at 16 after an overdose that nearly tore her family apart, Rue has found the one thing that can rival drugs for her affection: Jules. It does not store any personal data. Especially, as he was completely absent in the new season. Still, the majority of the cast is white, and some of the shows non-white fans want a more racially diverse main cast. When do we find out Jules is trans? The objective of this article is to explore this second perspective by analyzing the representation of Jules, a trans female character from the American series Euphoria (Levinson et al., 2019-present). When do we find out Jules is trans? Rue was concerned for Jules safety and tried to convince her to meet this person somewhere public. Rue was concerned for Jules safety and tried to convince her to meet this person somewhere public. Euphoria's representation of its queer characters is becoming increasingly murky in season 2. 2023 IndieWire Media, LLC. All too frequently, trans women are made the sexual object of cis mens desire, and every episode of Euphoria is written and directed by Sam Levinson, a cis man. Why is he using his negative views of people like us for this show? Drugs are far from the only tool they are using to not think about the toxic state of the world. I mean, it took everything: teaching people how to use they/them/their pronouns as a singular; making sure people understood that trans women are women; if someone asks you where to go to the bathroom, this is where you go. If you haven't heard about Orange is the New Black 's stunning portrayal of a black trans woman in prison, portrayed by the brilliant . You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Warning: spoilers abound! Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. We would have to explain things to the people much higher up who have a say in how the story gets told. And it was his one line that the showrunner admits to having re-written multiple times over , that really made an impact. newsletter, most compelling television series of 2019, not only gets, but respects, todays teens, advocate turned model turned teen drama star. The objective of this article is to explore this second perspective by analyzing the representation of Jules, a trans female character from the American series Euphoria (Levinson et al., 2019 . Rachel Shatto. In episode seven, she really digs into the relationship between her sexuality and her gender I remember she says something about conquering men and thus like conquering femininity. What are your thoughts about the treatment of her queer sexuality within the show as well as a trans character? The only confirmed gay male character comes in the form of a violent, predatory middle-aged man, who hoards videos filmed nonconsensually. It might be hard to believe, but . Photos Courtesy of HBO TV Features Euphoria. It doesnt have anything to do with sexuality. Trans actress Hunter Schafer is the series breakout star: An advocate turned model turned teen drama star, she infused Jules storyline with her own personal experiences. But I understand that thats what a lot of teens are dealing with these days. In fact, its not much to ask at all. Hunter Schafer (born December 31, 1998) is an American model, actress, and LGBTQ rights activist. They really listened and they really represented as opposed to appropriating it for the sake of being trendy and looking cool, and you can always tell when shows do that because [the representation] is never quite right. This approach is useful and necessary, but it's missing something. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". 26. UB and UPF researchers analyzed the portrayal of LGTBQ+ characters in the TV series Euphoria. Sam did something that I think is really important for artists to think about in telling the very truthful details of his own personal story. McKay is absent for the vast majority of the second season, a disappearance which remains unexplained. Trans women, especially trans women of color, face unprecedented levels of violence, often from sexual partners. On "Euphoria," the characters' digital and physical lives are constantly swirling around one another, usually in a downward spiral that ends in alienation and self-loathing. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. 1. One of them was Cal Jacobs, Nates father, who didnt know she was a minor. Required fields are marked *. Not a good recommendation. It seems as though Levinson writes for shock and drama without ever caring to resolve the many traumas he pushes his marginalized characters through. And one million people are watching. 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