Queer Cinema

Academy considers gender fluid star in both male and female acting categories

Words by Tom Williams

Woman with long, wavy blonde hair and a pink top smiling at the camera.
Woman with long, wavy blonde hair and a pink top smiling at the camera.
Kelly Mantle makes Oscars history in victory for the trans community.

As awards ceremonies go, the Oscars has a pretty poor track record when it comes to actively promoting diversity within the film industry. It now seems, however, that the Academy isn’t completely adverse to progress. Despite initially screening in 2014, Miguel Ali’s Confessions of a Womaniser, which tells the story of a compulsive womaniser who befriends a transgender prostitute, was re-released theatrically this past week in order to qualify it for the 2017 Oscars.

Among the cast is American actor, comedian and drag queen Kelly Mantle, star of the sixth season of RuPaul’s Drag Race, who plays the role of Ginger in the film. The Academy recently confirmed that Mantle has been made eligible in both the male and female acting categories, which will hopefully pave way for more gender fluid actors. Although it’s unlikely that Mantle will take home the top prize on 27 February, this welcome piece of Oscars history represents a small victory for the transgender community.

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