During an Instagram Live on July 3 with California-based salon owner Christin Brown, Berry discussed the role. Even though she wasn’t officially a member of the cast, she did reveal that she was preparing for the role. Berry also misgendered the character several times throughout the live-stream.
“The woman is a trans character, so she’s a woman that transitioned into a man,” Berry explained at the time. “She’s a character in a project I love that I might be doing.”
A post shared by Christin Brown (@curlfactor) on Jul 3, 2020 at 4:06pm PDT
“Who this woman was is so interesting to me, and that will probably be my next project,” she added.
After the Instagram Live, the Oscar winning actress faced backlash for considering the role. “Plenty of trans male actors in the world. This role isn’t for you. Stop taking up space,” one person commented on the Instagram Live video.
“Please rethink this role. There are plenty of us trans actors who are more than capable of telling our stories, myself included. We fight tooth and nail for representation in Hollywood, and receive the least amount of it. Please let US tell OUR stories,” another chimed in.
“Don’t do this to the trans community. We need allies, not more transphobia,” a third told the actress.
Three days later on July 6, Berry announced that she was stepping back from the role and issued an apology.
“Over the weekend I had the opportunity to discuss my consideration of an upcoming role as a transgender man, and I’d like to apologize for those remarks,” she began in a statement shared to Twitter.
“As a cisgender woman, I now understand that I should not have considered this role,” Berry continued, “and that the transgender community should undeniably have the opportunity to tell their own stories.”
“I am grateful for the guidance and critical conversation over the past few days and I will continue to listen, educate and learn from this mistake. I vow to be an ally in using my voice to promote better representation on-screen, both in front of and behind the camera,” she concluded.
This isn’t the first time an actress pulled out of a role as a transgender man. In July 2018, Scarlett Johansson was set to play gangster and massage parlor owner Dante Tex Grill in the film Rub and Tug. She dropped out of the role after receiving backlash, eleven days later.
“In light of recent ethical questions raised surrounding my casting as Dante Tex Gill, I have decided to respectfully withdraw my participation in the project,” said Johansson in a statement to Out.com at the time.
“Our cultural understanding of transgender people continues to advance, and I’ve learned a lot from the community since making my first statement about my casting and realize it was insensitive,” the actress continued. “I have great admiration and love for the trans community and am grateful that the conversation regarding inclusivity in Hollywood continues.”
Newsweek did not receive comment from Halle Berry at the time of publication.
