Supergirl: Casting call for transgender character is closing soon
Producers of the US show Supergirl are looking for a transgender woman to play a new character.
According to the casting call placed on Cast It Talent, the deadline for applications will close in mid-July.
The new character, Nia Nal, will be a further addition to characters on the show from the LGBT community.
Chyler Leigh’s character, Alex, came out as lesbian in Supergirl‘s second season.
The show was nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for their lesbian storyline (The CW)
Supergirl has also been nominated for this storyline at the GLAAD Media Award, in 2017, for Outstanding Drama Series.
The new character will join the show in season 4, with a backstory of being a former political speech writer.
According to LGBTQ Nation, the character will be joining the show’s fictional media outlet, CatCo, as part of their investigative reporting team.
The casting call indicates that the ideal character would be a “confident, wunderkind of a fashionista.”
Although producers of the show are open to the ethnicity of the character, they do stipulate that they must be in their early twenties.
Supergirl is not the only US hit show that has taken steps to include transgender people in their storylines.
Medical drama Grey’s Anatomy have also written in two transgender characters into their scripts.
The show has remained ahead of the game with regards to covering LGBT topics.
Sara Ramirez played a bisexual woman on Grey’s Anatomy (ABC)
Jessica Capshaw, playing a lesbian paediatric surgeon since 2005, made a shocking exit from the show earlier this year.
Capshaw’s departure followed Sara Ramirez also parting with show, who played the first bisexual character on Grey’s.
Supergirl also seems to be following in the footsteps of Grey’s Anatomy, by embracing the idea of including transgender people in the show’s storytelling.
The show’s executive producer has already spoken out about a lack of transgender characters (Amanda Edwards/WireImage/Getty)
Greg Berlanti, executive producer and writer of Supergirl, has already spoken about the need for change concerning transgender characters.
Speaking at an event in Washington DC earlier this year, Berlanti said: “We had a trans actress playing a trans in a show I did that was not a superhero show, eleven years ago.
“And so I still feel behind the times every day on that issue.”
Berlanti referring to transgender actor Candis Cayne, who played Carmelita Rainer on the show Dirty Sexy Money.
The casting call for the first transgender character on Supergirl remains open until 16th July.
