![]() ![]() But the difference with Hunter is that she was already an activist. I’m always very quick to say, you can’t just find any trans person and think that they’re going to tell a good trans story, because we are all completely overwhelmed by mainstream culture and the tropes it tells us - even trans people. He was really open and collaborative with Hunter so that she could mold those details in a way that felt true to the story that she wanted to tell for Jules. 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. Scott Turner Schofield: I started out working with Sam Levenson on the script, which I read with an eye toward tropes … However, I do have to represent that I really didn’t have to do a lot in that regard. Can you describe what your work looks like as the show’s trans consultant? Polygon: You wore a few hats during the production of Euphoria. Polygon spoke with Schofield about his consulting work on the series and the “contact high” of working on Euphoria. Euphoria not only features other trans actors like Quintessa Swindell ( Trinkets), but also explores gender and sexuality in a way that feels authentic to its audience.Īccording to Scott Turner Schofield, Euphoria’s trans consultant, that’s due to showrunner Sam Levinson’s earnest desire to listen to trans individuals and fairly and accurately represent their experiences on screen. 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. The series follows Rue, Jules, and a handful of other teens as they struggle with addiction, sexuality, abuse, and identity. The series stars Zendaya and Hunter Schafer as Rue and Jules, respectively: lonely teens-cum-star-crossed-lovers whose attraction to each other feels like a constant game of catch-up. It might not really be up to me anymore.HBO’s Euphoria is one of the most compelling television series of 2019, and one of the few current teen dramas that not only gets, but respects, today’s teens. ![]() “But I don’t think that makes me an activist.” As for whether she’s a role model to young teens, Schafer says, “I don’t feel prepared or mature enough, but I think it’ll be interesting to see what happens over the next few months of the show airing. “I was in a place of privilege in my transition and felt like I could handle making myself visible in order to help my state understand why what they were doing was detrimental to my community,” Schafer says. Growing up in North Carolina, Schafer was a named plaintiff in the ACLU’s lawsuit with her home state over the “bathroom bill,” which sought to prohibit expansion of protections to LGBTQ people and to govern who could use what public washroom. She’s already experienced a few breakneck years of career evolution, and she was practically just a high schooler (she brought her younger sister to a “Euphoria” screening recently to verify that the series rang true). Schafer comes by her wisdom about rapid change, and her knowledge of high school, honestly. But it’s also really exciting to me, continuing to morph and to evolve.” The idea of having to put that aside and create this new person is scary. As a trans person I worked really, really, really hard to figure out who I was and solidify that and take hold of it. We’re so much more complex than just one identity.” “Euphoria” hasn’t just changed the way Schafer sees her career unfolding: “It’s altered the way I think, period. “There need to be more roles where trans people aren’t just dealing with being trans they’re being trans while dealing with other issues. Playing a role in which gender was not the struggle was exciting. Jules represents a too-rare opportunity - the character grapples with desire but not, in the show’s early going, with gender identity, in which she is secure. The allure of HBO and Zendaya aside, it’s easy to see why Schafer disrupted her plans. ![]() “Eventually, I did my final audition out in L.A., and I was filming a pilot a month later.” Describing how she ended up auditioning for an HBO drama - after experiencing the first blush of fame as a model for Christian Dior, Helmut Lang and Marc Jacobs, among others - Schafer says, “I was just like, ‘F–k it why not? Let’s try!’ It snowballed from there.” Her reps suggested she attend the first audition, which Schafer had already seen posted on Instagram she’d been planning to attend fashion design school. In conversation, Schafer is as light and airy as her idealist character. ![]()
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