Halle Berry dropped out of the running to play a transgender man in an upcoming movie. She made the announcement three days after coming under fire for repeatedly misgendering the character.
“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,” the Oscar winner, 53, said in a statement via Twitter on Monday, July 6. “As a cisgender woman, I now understand that I should not have considered this role, and that the transgender community should undeniably have the opportunity to tell their own stories.”
Berry told fans that she is “grateful for the guidance and critical conversation over the past few days.” She also promised to “continue to listen, educate and learn” from her 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.
— Halle Berry (@halleberry) July 7, 2020
The Monster’s Ball star revealed via Instagram Live on Friday, July 3, that she had been preparing for the role but was not yet officially a member of the cast. Throughout the livestream, she misgendered the character multiple times, raising eyebrows on social media.
“The woman is a trans character, so she’s a woman that transitioned into a man,” Berry said at the time. “She’s a character in a project I love that I might be doing. … Who this woman was is so interesting to me, and that will probably be my next project.”
After the actress stepped aside on Monday, GLAAD responded via Twitter, saying, “We are please that @halleberry listened to the concerns of transgender people and learned from them. Other powerful people should do the same.” The LGBTQ rights organization also urged her to watch the Netflix documentary Disclosure “to learn about trans representation in media.”
We are pleased that @halleberry listened to the concerns of transgender people and learned from them. Other powerful people should do the same. A good place to start is by watching @Disclosure_Doc to learn about trans representation in media. https://t.co/SAxSvXxbk3
— GLAAD (@glaad) July 7, 2020
The official Twitter account for Disclosure, meanwhile, tweeted, “Thank you @halleberry for listening and learning. We hope #DisclosureDoc is one of many educational tools you and others can rely to inspire and strengthen allyship.”
Thank you @halleberry for listening and learning. We hope #DisclosureNetflix is one of many educational tools you and others can rely to inspire and strengthen allyship. https://t.co/SA71QFsgAN
— Disclosure Documentary (@Disclosure_Doc) July 7, 2020
