American Horror Story creator Ryan Murphy has hired five transgender actors to join the cast of his new TV series Pose—a drama set in 1980s New York.
According to , Pose will have the “largest cast of transgender actors in series regular roles ever for a scripted series”.
The actors—who have all been cast to play transgender characters—are MJ Rodriguez, Indya Moore, Dominique Jackson, Hailie Sahar, and Angelica Ross.
Sahar and Ross have both previously appeared on Transparent while Rodriguez has had roles on both Nurse Jackie and The Carrie Diaries.
The new series is expected to premiere in 2018 and will illustrate the very different worlds that co-existed in Manhattan 30 years ago.
“Set in the 1980s, Pose looks at the juxtaposition of several segments of life and society in New York: the rise of the luxury Trump-era universe, the downtown social and literary scene and the ball culture world,” .
Murphy has co-created the series with longtime collaborator Brad Falchuk as well as up-and-coming writer Steven Canals.
“We are thrilled that Pose pushes the narrative forward by centering on the unique and under-told experiences of trans women and gay people of colour,” .
“Ryan has assembled a strong team of storytellers and innovators to collaborate on telling this important narrative. As a Bronx-bred queer writer of colour, I’m honoured to aid in ushering this groundbreaking show into homes.”
Canals has reportedly been writing scripts for Pose with Transparent writer and producer Our Lady J as well as acclaimed author and trans activist Janet Mock.
Murphy's decision to hire trans actors to play trans roles has been praised on social media.
Pose will also star James Van Der Beek, Kate Mara, Tatiana Maslany and Evan Peters.
