Trace Lysette is weighing in on the discourse of cis actors taking part in trans roles.
At the 2024 Film Independent Spirit Awards, which befell on the seashore in Santa Monica, California on Sunday, February 25, Trace Lysette caught up with IndieWire on the “blue” carpet. The trans actress was nominated for Best Lead Performance for her efficiency in “Monica,” alongside fellow nominees Jessica Chastain, Greta Lee, Natalie Portman, Judy Reyes, Franz Rogowski, Andrew Scott, and Teyana Taylor — Jeffrey Wright finally received for “American Fiction.”
Whether it’s acceptable for cis actors to play trans roles has been a matter of accelerating debate.
“Well, if all things were equal, maybe it wouldn’t be as big of a deal as it is, but all things are not equal,” Lysette instructed IndieWire on the Spirits’ blue carpet. “If there’s a trans role, I believe that trans actors should get first dibs.”
“Because, you know, speaking as a transsexual woman, I know for a fact that a cis man could not play the same role in the same way that I could, because he hasn’t lived what I’ve lived,” she continued. “I’ve been transitioned since I was a teenager. I’ve lived longer as a woman, than I was as a little boy. It’s a very unique life experience. It’s not one that you can just go research and then play, you know. So that’s all I have to say about that.”
Lysette went on to reward Film Independent for showcasing the tasks that they do. “I appreciate [them] for keeping indie film and performance-based awards alive. They seem to be kind of exempt from the money game and that means a lot to me.”
In planning for future tasks, we additionally requested the Spirit Awards nominee who she want to collaborate with on a future mission. “The people in my category, Jessica Chastain, Natalie Portman, Jeffrey Wright,” she stated with a smile. “There’s so many. I just want to work with people who want to work with me. I try to go wherever the love is, so wherever that is.”
In IndieWire’s review of “Monica,” Jude Dry wrote that “Lysette is the canvas, brush, and paint that makes ‘Monica’ shine. Stunning to watch and radiating great depth, she carries the film with a graceful dignity.” The movie premiered on the 79th Venice International Film Festival and was picked up by IFC Films for a May 2023 launch. It is presently nominated for Outstanding Film – Limited Release on the GLAAD Media Awards, going down subsequent month.
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