by Nikola Marković - December 2024
Trans visibility has become a staple in the last decade in the film and TV industry. From the global hit Baby Reindeer to the phenomenon of the Barbie movie, some of the biggest movies and TV shows of the past years have not gone without the inclusion of trans roles. Influence and the impact of trans visibility also permeates to mainstream fashion and style. Trans actors are not only changing the face of the film industry, but also the fashion landscape as well. This article will explore some of the most influential trans actors who left a mark in the fashion world and tackle their stylistic choices.
Nava Mau
The first person we wanted to feature is Nava Mau, whose most recent rise to mainstream success accompanied this year’s critically acclaimed breakout series "Baby Reindeer". For her portrayal of Teri, the trans girlfriend of protagonist Donny Dunn, she received an Emmy nomination for supporting actress in a limited or anthology series or movie – the first openly trans woman to do so in that category. She was also an honoree at the Critics Choice Association’s Celebration of LGBTQ+ Cinema & Television. Before all of these ventures, Mau was the director, producer and lead actress of "Waking Hour" (2019), part of the main cast of the HBO Max series "Generation" (2021), as well as a production fellow for the Netflix documentary "Disclosure".
Mau’s fashion is a subtle protest and rejection of conformity. She told British Vogue that she is on the lookout for anything on the catwalk "that conveys an attitude," giving her stylists Amanda Lim and prior Luca Kingston references like "punk princess" and "vampire chic". For her Emmy red carpet, Mau collaborated with another trans icon, Gigi Goode, who started a self-titled fashion brand after being the runner-up of RuPaul’s Drag Race season 12. In the feminine yet sculptural red custom gown, Nava Mau shared an emotional moment during the red-carpet live broadcast of Live from E! with Laverne Cox. Cox shed a tear after introducing Mau exactly 10 years after she became the first out trans person to be nominated for an acting Emmy Award.
Candy Darling
Next, we want to pay homage to a trans pioneer and gender revolutionary who has probably remained unknown to a mainstream audience, especially amongst Gen Z and Gen Alpha readers. Candy Darling was a muse of the Velvet Underground, The Rolling Stones and Warhol who cast her in two movies he produced: "Flesh" (1968) and "Women in Revolt" (1971). Darling went on to appear in other independent films, including "Silent Night, Bloody Night," "Klute" with Jane Fonda and "Lady Liberty" with Sophia Loren. Her acting wasn’t limited to movies but included many theatre credits. Arguably, the most important in her repertoire is the original production of Tennessee Williams' play Small Craft Warnings (1972), for which Darling was cast by Williams himself. This year, an expansive new biography exploring Darling’s legacy was published, written by Cynthia Carr.
Darling’s aesthetic combined classic Hollywood glamour and 70s boho, effortlessly mixing prints and sequin with furs and lace. Her image was one of a blonde bombshell with an edge. Modeling for the images of renowned photographers like Robert Mapplethorpe, Richard Avedon, Peter Hujar, Fred W. McDarrah or Gerard Malanga, Darling’s wild mystique is undeniable. She was described as the living embodiment of Marilyn Monroe, Joan Bennet and Jean Harlow all in one, or a cross between Kim Novak and Pat Nixon.
Daniel Sea
Way before queer and trans representation started to take off, Daniel Sea rose to prominence portraying Max, the first recurring transmasculine role on television, in Showtime's "The L Word" (2006-2009). Although criticized, at times, for its shallow or unfair treatment of queer characters, this series started some important conversations and challenged the prevailing depictions of trans men on TV by cisgender actors. A reboot of the series titled Generation Q premiered in 2022, 17 years after the original, and Sea reprised the role in an attempt to mend the original's shortcomings.
Having continued to be engaged in activism, art and music, Sea’s fashion seems to be imbued with this artistic and activist sensibility, through which he tries to reimagine the classic archetypes of masculinity. In 2023, Sea announced the release of the limited-edition capsule denim jacket collab with Finnegan Shepard at the trans clothing brand Both&!. In an Instagram post, Sea wrote: "This experience of creating this jacket for our trans/non-binary/masc/GNC communities has been incredibly special. (…) To me, the jean jacket is a magical cloak. It represents self-determination and a declaration of sovereignty: to be able to operate outside the strict repressive rules of a mainstream society, to think for oneself, and feel pride in who I have created myself to be."
Laverne Cox
There can hardly be a consideration of trans icons without Laverne Cox and her contributions. After rising to fame for her role in Netflix’s "Orange Is the New Black" (2013), Cox became the first ‘out’ trans person nominated for a Primetime Emmy in an acting category. After this seminal role, Cox has furthered her acting career with roles in "Promising Young Woman" and "Inventing Anna", as well as starring and executive-producing Netflix’s "Disclosure" (2020), a documentary (that we mentioned earlier) which takes an in-depth look at trans representation in media.
Apart from her acting and activist inclinations, Cox is an avid lover and collector of fashion. In fact, many publications wrote about her staggering 500-piece vintage Mugler collection. In an interview with British Vogue, Cox explains that her fascination with Mugler’s tailoring and his extreme vision of femininity comes from her being a trans woman and wanting to be more ‘shapely.’ Cox not only collects vintage– she wears her extensive vintage collection on the red carpets, from Live With E! at the Grammy Awards through People’s Choice Awards to the Oscars. Because of this seamless implementation of vintage and archival pieces in her style, she is often deemed the ‘queen of the archives.’
Indya Moore
The FX television series Pose was groundbreaking for gathering the biggest ensemble of trans actors to date. Anyone can be featured from the show’s stellar cast. However, Indya Moore, also known for their modeling ventures, arguably left the biggest mark in the fashion world. She became the first trans person to be featured on the cover of the U.S. Elle magazine and was named one of the Time 100 most influential people in the world in 2019. Since then, Moore has been on the covers not only of Elle but Teen Vogue and L’Officiel USA, featured in Louis Vuitton’s Pre-Fall 2019 lookbook and Calvin Klein campaigns. Meanwhile, their acting career includes psychological thriller "Escape Room: Tournament of Champions" (2021) and upcoming TV series "Magic Hour," a horror, gender-bending recreation of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.
Whenever they hit the red carpet, Moore uses fashion to take back the power of trans and nonbinary experience. She has always purposefully utilized red carpet moments as a platform to talk about the issues of the LGBTQAI+ community. Take this beautiful and unsettling example into consideration: a pair of Beads Byaree earrings comprised of 17 frames with pictures of 17 trans women murdered in the year 2019. They continued this activist ethos through a collaboration with Tommy Hilfiger on a new capsule collection that they described not as genderless but ‘genderfull.’
Elliot Page
Before coming out as trans in 2020, Elliot Page had already gathered all the most important acting accolades, including nominations for an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, three British Academy Film Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. After coming out and specifying his pronouns as he and they, which was mirrored in Page’s character in Netflix "The Umbrella Academy," Page became the first out trans man featured on the cover of Time magazine. He is also known for his outspoken activism for LGBTQAI+ rights and pro-choice feminism.
Page’s fashion staples are black, baggy or boxy pieces featuring traditionally masculine tailoring and design elements like buttoned-up collars. His style can be described as ‘casual minimalism’ with a stylish punch, so the oversized silhouettes are always complemented with interesting details. Take, for example, the Balenciaga platform Crocs with a metal toe-cap; or a green carnation on a lapel, a powerful queer symbol paying tribute to Oscar Wilde. GQ noticed his recent tendency to mix black and brown, a combination until recent years deemed unorthodox. For instance, Page showed up at the Toronto International Film Festival in two black-and-brown ensembles, while at a "Close to You" party, Page layered a brown cardigan over a plain black Gap T-shirt, paired with straight-legged Gucci pants and a Carhartt crossbody bag.
Hari Nef
Hari Nef had her runway debut in 2015 walking for Hood by Air and Eckhaus Latta at NYFW and subsequently became the first trans woman signed to IMG Models. After these modelling ventures, Nef went on partaking in the most important cultural moments of recent years. Some of these include starring in this decade’s biggest TV shows including "Transparent", "You", "Assassination Nation”, "The Idol" and "And Just Like That…" All of this led Nef to the Barbie movie, in which she plays Dr. Barbie, a role that is never even defined as being trans within the film narrative. Given that “doll” adopted from slang is increasingly being used amongst trans women to empower each other, it gives this casting choice extra metacontextual depth.
Hari’s red-carpet style is elegant and eclectic yet somewhat avant-garde for the mainstream taste. Nef effortlessly mixes up-and-comers like Maximilian Davis for Ferragamo, Ludovic de Saint Sernin and Luar with vintage treasures. Some of her most cherished red-carpet moments include a corseted gown by Maison Margiela worn at the SAG Awards and the knife-embellished dress by Dilara Fındıkoğlu worn at the premiere of Barbie. But what truly solidified Nef as a new-generation fashion icon is her involvement in this year’s defining cultural moment – "brat summer". Namely, Charli XCX gathered all the it-girls for the music video of her song "360," from Julia Fox through Cloe Sevigny to influencer Emma Chamberlain, rounding up the circle with none other than Hari Nef.
Hunter Schafer
Another brilliant trans icon whose acting and modeling careers intertwine is Hunter Shafer. She started modeling in 2017, and her remarkable portfolio to this day includes Dior, Marc Jacobs, Gucci, Prada, Rick Owens, Thierry Mugler, Maison Margiela, to name a few. Shafer made her acting debut as trans high schooler Jules in the HBO teen drama television series ‘Euphoria’ (2019), and has since then starred in Belle (2022), The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (2023), Kinds of Kindness (2024) and most recently Cuckoo (2024). Shafer also collaborated with an influential trans musical, Anohni, for whose song "Why Am I Alive Now?" she directed the music video.
Now a Prada ambassador and collaborator of renowned stylists like Dara Allen, Schafer’s fashion choices are always very exciting and surprising. Her style is described by Marie Claire as ethereal yet edgy, having the ‘cool-kid versatility’. For instance, on one occasion she can look like a feminine garden fairy embellished with Marni’s colorful 3D flower dress. On another, she can look sharp and androgynous in a monochromatic ensemble of the high-necked collared blouse and slim trousers. Some of her boldest red carpets were worn at the Vanity Fair Oscars after-party, one being Rick Owens’ grungy patchwork denim mermaid dress with raw edges, and another being Ann Demeulemeester’s daring two-piece set consisting of a white slinky maxi skirt and a singular feather accent across the chest.
Yasmin Finney
The youngest on this list, Yasmin Finney gained a remarkable following through her TikTok presence before she would have her breakthrough as an actor portraying Elle Argent in the Netflix series "Heartstopper" (2022), and later Rose Noble in the BBC series "Doctor Who." Being an inspirational young trans role model for Gen Z and Gen Alpha youth, Finney also quickly became a trendsetting fashion icon. She has already adorned the covers of British Vogue, Teen Vogue, Elle, and GQ, and has become YSL Beauté Ambassador for the UK and the face of Tiffany.
Finney’s style has been described as playful, fun, and eclectic, celebrating multiple facets of trans identity. For her, fashion does not seem to be strict – the same view she shares when it comes to identity – but is instead a playground for creative explorations. She was spotted wearing a wide variety of different designers and houses, from big labels like Prada, Miu Miu, Gucci, or Ralph Lauren to relative newcomers like Nensi Dojaka and Charles Jeffrey’s Loverboy. If you want to read more about Yasmin Finney’s personal and fashion journey and how it reflects on her character, Elle Argent, you can read our article here.
Today, acting and fashion, despite being seemingly separate industries, are both facilitating and supporting the increased prevalence of trans representation. These nine trans men and trans women actors along with others are paving the way for more inclusive landscape in both fashion and media. If you want to know more about trans representation in fashion, check out our article on top non binary and transgender models as well as our feature of transgender TV characters.
Nikola Marković (they) is a gender-fluid artist, researcher, and writer based between Serbia, Austria, and the UK, currently doing their PhD in fashion. Their research-driven writing and artistic practice aim at disrupting the binarities/hierarchies of gender, class, ability, subject-object dualism, and further decentralising fashion studies.