Jeffrey Tambor Would Be Happy to Be the Last Cisgender Male Actor to Play a Trans Female Character

Jeffrey Tambor, who won his second Emmy for playing Maura Pfefferman on Transparent, would be happy if other actors didn’t follow in his footsteps. After accepting his award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, Tambor brought up the issue of casting cisgender men like himself in the roles of transgender female characters, which tends to be a surefire route to awards recognition, even as it deprives trans actors of work and the larger community of representation. “Please give transgender talent a chance. Give them auditions. Give them their story,� Tambor said. “I would not be unhappy were I the last cisgender male to play a female transgender [character] on television.�