Laverne Cox Reacts to Becoming First Transgender Emmy Nominee in History
Laverne Cox continues to make waves in the television industry, this time as the Emmy Award's first "openly transgender" acting nominee. When the Emmy nominations were announced this morning, Cox was among the nominees for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series for her role as Sophia Burset on Netflix's Orange Is the New Black. She will compete in the category against castmates Uzo Aduba and Natasha Lyonne, who play Suzanne "Crazy Eyes" Warren and Nicky Nichols, respectively.
But how is Cox responding to her history-making nomination?
"I'm on cloud nine. I'm through the roof," Laverne said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter after the news of the historic nomination first broke. "What a wonderful, wonderful day for Orange and for black trans-women...Would you ever have thought a show about a women's prison would have this moment? It's unbelievable!"
Orange Is the New Black is the year's most nominated comedy, earning nods not only for Cox, Lyonne, and Aduba, but also for Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series (Taylor Schilling), Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (Kate Mulgrew), and nominations for directing, writing, and various technical/craft awards. All in all, Orange Is the New Black landed a staggering 12 nominations, which is a huge success for Netflix, a network which is only in its second year of Emmy contention (although the number of nods pales in comparison to the 99 nominations received by HBO. But even the top major networks have trouble meeting that sort of insane nomination tally).
Yet, even with all the awards attention, Cox's fellow castmates are taking time out of their media rounds to congratulate her on her trailblazing nomination. Mulgrew stated that "it’s recognition of a community that very much needs and wants to be recognized, understood and rewarded." She would go on to add, "I think that Laverne as both an activist and an actor is doing a Herculean job of bringing transgenderism to the forefront of American politics and culture."
Aduba also contributed to the praise for Cox: “I love Laverne, and she’s done just an amazing thing for the trans community, period, end of story."
She continued: "The fact that [creator Jenji Kohan] had the bravery — and the team at Netflix — to put someone on television like Laverne, like these women of color, with so many different sexual orientations, it’s exciting. I’m just thankful that they’ve recognized her, that’s all.”
The congratulations from Cox are even coming from areas outside the acting community. GLAAD president and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis issued a special press release to comment on the historic occasion:
"From gracing the cover of Time magazine, to now becoming the first openly transgender person to be nominated for an Emmy in an acting category, Laverne Cox continues to break barriers," the statement read. "Today, countless transgender youth will hear the message that they can be who they are and still achieve their dreams — nothing is out of reach. Laverne's success on a hit series is a clear indication that audiences are ready for more trans characters on television."
With any luck, we can follow this up in August with the story of the first transgender Emmy winner. Congratulations, Laverne!
Credit: Netflix