These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. In fact, the sexual assault McKay endures is never mentioned for the rest of the season except in passing comments made by Cassie (Sydney Sweeney), his white girlfriend, to her friends. Abstract. Although many are appalled (myself included) by its graphic nature, it cannot be denied that the series paints a deeply authentic picture of queer people in a way that many shows have been unable to capture. Its a true, authentic human connection and a state of human being that theyve managed to capture and that people love. In a 2019 interview with Dazed, Schafer said her sexuality is "closer to what you might call a lesbian.". 1 day ago. I feel the way it 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. All rights reserved. Theyre so enthusiastic and warm. That was the true moment of real trans infiltration, you know what I mean? Lets hope Euphoria moves forward to highlight how the new generations anticipate and welcome trans individuals into society. It is reasonable to want positive representation in hit shows. Jules is depicted as mentally unstable, her depiction rooted in negative cliches of what trans people are. Most characters on the show are all about participating in the most raunchy sexual relations, but according to a 2019 article in The New York Times, the percentage of real-life teens having sex is lower than ever before. Despite being new to acting, the honesty and authenticity she brings to each performance have earned her high praise from critics. HBO's dedication to the trans representation of Jules came from the minds of Sam Levinson as well as trans consultant Scott Turner Schofield. That was the real joy of working on it. In an uncharacteristically safe move for Soloway, Josh balks at following through with a sexual relationship after finding out Shea is HIV-positive. 1. In stark contrast, she has a good relationship with her father, who supported her transition at a young age. 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. Because of these little hints, viewers wondered, Is Jules from. On January 26, the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Euphoria's representation of its queer characters is becoming increasingly murky in season 2. Levinson is a heterosexual white man in his 40s and it shows. Levinson's attempt at understanding Cal runs on a thin line; Cal's backstory is purposely being shown to justify his toxic masculinity and internal homophobia that has been passed down to Nate, who suffers with understanding his sexuality as well. has been renewed for a third season, with Schafer set to reprise her breakout role. Elsa: Humor, Sunglasses, and a Bag of Chips. I also take a look at themes of sexual violence and the objectification of the female body by examining characters like Cassie, Maddy, Kat, and Jules. Your email address will not be published. When we see Jules in the series, she is a trans woman already comfortable in her gender identity. The fact that its even a question speaks to the depth and breadth of the trans stories finding mainstream success, a reality that would have been unimaginable even five years ago. Euphoria. Schafer has also spoken up about the difficulty of coming out in high school as a trans teen. We have life beyond this, and thats what were seeing with Jules. Polygon spoke to Scott Turner Schofield, the trans consultant on the . The narrative in cinema and TV series has shown LGBTIQ+ people (lesbians, gays, bisexuals . Despite the popularity of Euphoria, the HBO show suffers for its lack of non-exploitative representation. Levinson is not the guy and Euphoria is not the show to give us the representations of our communities that we want. Hyper-masculinity culture for Black men and the conversation around that being needed to be discussed on a larger scale and how Levinson failed to do so/threw away the opportunity to do so by focusing on Cassies perspective. Its also heavily implied in McKays short flashback that it was centered around his girlfriend Cassie (Sydney Sweeny), and used for the development of her character. Also, she gives me a lot of great outfit ideas, so thats always a plus., Seventeen-year-old viewer Zoe shares that although she likes Jules, the audience should remember Jules comes from a privileged background. These are all the best television and streaming series with LGBTQ+ representation, including 'Pose,' 'RuPaul's Drag Race,' 'Queer Eye,' and 'Tales of the City.' Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. So we had to explain that it would be much more authentic to the world that were representing to not do that. Can you explain exactly what that means? The show's graphic depiction of sexual activity couldn't be further from the truth. Register *It's free and easy. Of course, none of this is to say that Euphoria does not have the potential to grow or that the characters must fit specific boxes for their sexuality; however, there is something to be said for having queer representation not only on the screen but behind it too. . Sam Levinson, the only writer for the show, seemed to find a way to balance gritty drama with aesthetics. It does not store any personal data. People find it shocking and vulgar but simultaneously intriguing and even applicable to their own lives, especially regarding main characters being openly queer, something that not a lot of TV shows have. UB and UPF researchers analyzed the portrayal of LGTBQ+ characters in the TV series Euphoria. Sign up for our Email Newsletters here. But its not precisely the new hue thats captivating viewers. Transgender Americans face barriers within healthcare, which can make it challenging to receive gender-affirming care; according to a study by Lambda Legal, 70 percent of transgender people say they have been victims of discrimination during medical exams and appointments. The violence and lack of help that the protagonist, Brandon Teena, dealt with is nightmarish for most trans men. There are even several blink-and-youll-miss-it moments in episodes where we see her inject hormones or swipe on gay dating apps. but by Hunter Schafer, the actress who plays Jules, In season two, Sam Levinson tries to humanize this character. And that Sam got that so right without words, just got it completely spot on that was the greatest high, better than any drug Ive ever used. Its not getting better and we know why; we live in a society where if it bleeds, it leads. Rue finds out that Jules is trans in the third episode of Euphoria. Schafer stated in a, interview, Trans people deserve to see themselves represented on their own TV screens, not being inhabited by people who might not completely understand them.. We would have to explain things to the people much higher up who have a say in how the story gets told. Of course, Jules character is complex, and there is no reason that she cannot grow and learn more about herself, but that does not change the fact that there is a noticeable difference in characterization between an episode written by Hunter Schafer, a queer trans woman, and the episodes written by Sam Levinson, a straight cisgender man. Emily St. James is a senior correspondent for Vox, covering American identities. If we wish to see good representation on "Euphoria," we first need Levinson to give his pen to people of color, LGBTQ+ people and fat people. His character enduring something so traumatizing, even just to watch, just to be sidelined. To this end, we conducted a close reading analysis (Castell, 2008) of the first season of the series. Not to mention the common racist stereotyping of McKay being a football player plays into the hyper-masculine and hyper athletic trope often associated with Black men. This turmoil peaks when McKay is sexually assaulted by members of his team and his fraternity brothers as part of a hazing ritual. In her first major scene in the show's pilot, Jules arrives at a . Hollywood encourages drama over reality so Im not expecting much. Before she joined Vox in 2014, she was the first TV editor of . Rue was concerned for Jules safety and tried to convince her to meet this person somewhere public. The second season of Euphoria is preoccupied with a timeworn moral sentiment. In just a few years, the runway model, activist for LGBTQIA+ rights and actress has become a recognizable name amongst teens and fashion industry professionals alike. Despite controversy, the HBO Original is a source of queer visibility, Ashwini Vivek, Opinion columnist|February 17, 2022. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Jules Vaughn is a main character in the HBO series. It is not empowering or accepting: it creates a skewed view of homophobia that ultimately lets it slide. Eddy Chen/HBO. He was really open and collaborative with Hunter [Schafer] so that she could mold those details in a way that felt true to the story that she wanted to tell for Jules. It has a very negative perception of the LGBT community. Oct 22, 2020 . Because again, it has nothing to do with their genders. As Euphorias second season comes to a close, it only seems fitting to comment on the new season. Trans representation in Euphoria. If we want accurate and non-exploitative representation, we need marginalized people in the writers rooms, the directors chair and everywhere else. While Euphoria 's first season established Cal as an outwardly successful man with a secret life, the second season spent two episodes delving into Cal's backstory and then the breakdown he experiences, which included a spectacular telling off of his family, when he can no longer conceal his identity as a gay man any longer. 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 . Warning: spoilers abound! 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 . I truly believe that the thing that makes cis people love and admire trans people so much is the fact that we understand something really deep about ourselves, and thats actually really special. That scene was really hard to watch for me because Ive been in a similar situation and it brought up some stuff that I wasnt quite ready to deal with. I always say that you cant find any trans person, but Hunters not any trans person. In early high school (during a more primary stage in my transition), I felt safer using the womens restroom and locker room., Schafer is critical of trans representation in Hollywood and would like to see trans roles played by trans actors because she feels they can bring their experiences forward to their performances. I want to come on and play somebodys Auntie, said Transparent actress Trace Lysette, who is gearing up for the fall release of Hustlers, in which shell feature opposite Jennifer Lopez and Constance Wu. He is the sole writer and creator of the hit HBO television series Euphoria. Unfortunately, the highly anticipated second season is falling flat and many viewers are noticing why: Levinson writes stories empowered by experiences he does not hold. Jules started transitioning when she was 13 years old. Borderlands 3. If its the closest thing to being desiredIll take that. When do we find out Jules is trans? document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Comments that are deemed spam or hate speech by the moderators will be deleted. Published Jan 26, 2022. I wouldnt be doing this if I didnt think that this was an amazing show doing something really different for trans representation. I really put myself on the line like that, and to feel totally trusting that was a high. Polygon spoke with Schofield about his consulting work on the series and the contact high of working on Euphoria. Euphoria Resolved Season 1's Biggests Cliffhanger In The Most Underwhelming Fashion. The only Black male lead character in the first season, McKay (Algee Smith), is a football prodigy already an extension of the common racist stereotyping of Black boys and men as hyper-athletic in his first year of college. But we cannot limit representation to those in front of the camera. And one million people are watching. I said [to Sam Levinson], Jules is the one who gets herself more than anybody else on this show. I'm a senior Computer Science major and a Classical Studies minor from Newton, North Carolina with a passion for art. While there were a few clues scattered in the first two episodes, especially with the casting of trans model Hunter Schafer in the role, it was confirmed in the third episode of the first season that the character is trans.

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