The 97th Annual Academy Awards are coming up quickly on the 2025 TV schedule, and this year could be one to talk about regarding transgender representation. Regarding the Oscars, it’s been almost a decade since big talk about representation at the awards show went viral with #OscarsSoWhite. While Hollywood’s biggest night has given out more golden trophies to a more diverse group of people in recent years, 2025 could particularly be a massive step in the direction of more trans people being recognized – but, it will likely overlook one particularly good film from the community.
Between the buzz that Emilia Pérez and Will & Harper are getting this Oscar season, this could be a landmark year for transgender representation in movies being talked about during award season, but it's a shame I Saw The TV Glow is being left out. Let’s talk about it.
The History Of Trans Representation At The Oscars So Far
Over the nearly one hundred years that the Oscars have been around, stories about transgender people have been highlighted at the award show, but oftentimes with actors who are not part of the community actually earning recognition for playing trans people.
Movies like 1975’s Dog Day Afternoon, 1982’s The World According To Garp, 1992’s The Crying Game, 2005’s Transamerica, 2011’s Albert Nobbs, 2013’s Dallas Buyers Club and 2015’s The Danish Girl have all involved the topic of transgender people and have even earned some Oscars. While it's been important for these stories to be told, rarely if at all have the people within the community been given the opportunity to tell their own stories, and that needs to change.
There have been a few instances of people within the transgender community earning Oscar nominations. Such as in 1974, when Angela Morley became the first openly transgender Academy Award nominee for working on the music for The Little Prince, and she was also nominated in 1977 for The Slipper and the Rose—The Story of Cinderella.
In 2017, Yance Ford became the first openly transgender man to be nominated for an Oscar for Best Documentary feature with Strong Island. Additionally, Anohni was the first transgender person to be nominated for Best Original Song for the 2015 documentary, Racing Extinction. It’s also worth noting that Elliot Page has an Oscar nomination for 2008’s Juno, but it was prior to their transition in 2020.
Karla Sofía Gascon Is Poised To Be The First Trans Woman To Be Nominated In Acting
There have been controversies around cisgender actors playing and winning Oscars for playing trans people – such as with Eddie Redmayne recently sharing regrets for starring in The Danish Girl to portray Lili Elbe. But this year, it’s likely that for the first time, an out trans actor will be nominated for an Academy Award. Karla Sofía Gascon is predicted to be in the Best Actress category at this year’s Oscars for Emilia Pérez, for playing a drug cartel kingpin who decides to fake their death and have a gender-affirming surgery in order to live their life in their truest way, as a woman.
According to Gold Derby’s odds list for the category, she is No. 3 under Mikey Madison’s Anora performance and Demi Moore’s The Substance performance, giving her tremendous odds for at least taking one of the five slots as a nominee. It is a very stacked category this year, between Wicked’s Cynthia Erivo, I’m Still Here’s Fernanda Torres, Hard Truth’s Marianne Jean-Baptiste, The Last Showgirl’s Pamela Anderson, Lee’s Kate Winslet, Babygirl’s Nicole Kidman and Maria’s Angelina Jolie also among top contenders, but a nomination would be a huge step, considering its one of the most high-profile awards of the night.
While we could see a historical milestone for an underrepresented sect of the LGBTQ+ community at this year’s Oscars, Gascon’s character and the movie have, however, been ridden with controversy due to the response for how it depicts its trans character. GLAAD (Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) for example, declared it was not good trans representation, citing numerous reviews against the film including Autostraddle’s words that it has “every trans trope you can imagine.”
And, Will & Harper Is In The Running For Best Documentary
Another trans-focused movie that could earn an Academy Award nomination at the 97th Oscars is Will & Harper. The movie follows Will Ferrell as he goes on a road trip with his longtime friend and collaborator, who recently transitioned into a woman named Harper Steele. As they travel together across the U.S., Ferrell gets to ask Harper honest questions about how the transition affects their friendship and her life going forward, and it has a slice-of-life approach to sharing the joys and struggles facing trans people.
The documentary, which is also one of CinemaBlend’s top movies of 2024, doesn’t have as high of a chance of being nominated as Emilia Pérez, considering Gold Derby has it at No. 6 below No Other Land, Sugarcane, Daughters, Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat and Dahomey, but it does offer a unique chance for a trans story to earn a nomination, and potential win. It’s great to see it in the conversation.
The Academy Will Likely Overlook One Great 2024 Trans Film
While it could be a landmark year for trans representation at the Oscars, it’s unfortunate another film from the community isn’t getting its flowers during award season as we gear up for nominations to be released.
I Saw The TV Glow is a powerful drama (with a lot of horror elements to its name) that illustrates how it felt for writer/director Jane Schoenbrun to exist in the wrong body before their transition. The movie follows an isolated teen named Owen (masterfully played by Justice Smith), living in the ‘90s who connects with a fellow high schooler over a TV show called The Pink Opaque – inspired by Jane’s love of Buffy The Vampire Slayer growing up.
Through some hauntingly memorable filmmaking, Schoenbrun is able to communicate the dread trans people can feel pre-transition through a lyrical and visually stunning film. Martin Scorsese has even praised it for being one of his favorites of 2024. On Gold Derby, the movie is down at No. 33 for Best Picture odds, Schoenbrun is at No. 41 and Justice Smith is a No. 17, making it very unlikely the title will be part of the Academy's picks.
Despite there being some disappointment from the LGBTQ+ community about what will get the spotlight at this year’s Academy Awards, all in all, we’ll look back at 2024 as an important year for trans stories in movies. These films being made and talked about is a solid step forward, and it's more important that these movies exist and are providing more visibility for the community, both to represent their stories and get conversation going in mainstream media.
Emilia Pérez and Will & Harper are on Netflix now, while I Saw The TV Glow is currently streaming for those with a Max subscription.
Academy Award nominations drop January 23 and the show will be on March 10.
