Our Place's Beloved Always Pan Is Officially Ready to Get Baked, The Best Chef's Knives Are a Cut Above the Rest. I really like a structure. And, as a semi-religious person who went to Catholic school, I have come to believe that God made me transgender. There are certainly a lot of errors. And doing it purposefully to try and disrespect Taylor, which is so clear because the writing is brilliant in it and the actors who do that are brilliant. Im not surprised that this conversation about conversion therapy is being spoken through a gender lens. I describe my gender identity as always sort of being this way. I am a transgender female. But I remember my first introduction to Adventure Time was actually watching a clip of Lumpy Space Princess, who is this deep-voiced, giant, pink, blobby, fluffy creature who has a lot of attitude and just doesnt really take anybodys crap. So INSTEAD I want to be visible to queer folx who don't see people like them on their feed. I dont know. They are able to just walk into a room with everything that theyve got, and say, like, Can you handle it?. Lets distinguish todays conversation: Were going to be speaking of the identities that fall under the non-binary identity, but its different from transgender. I think, Actually, I do need to take this opportunity to engage in this conversation, because there is perhaps a bridge to understanding here that will benefit people who dont have a voice, who cant walk down the street without being told to kill themselves.. And because gender is a spectrum. How incredible to have a nonbinary character show skin on television! Thank you again. They have a mild social media following with more than 150k followers on Instagram and more than 50k followers on Twitter. We have a gender binary-enforced society, and conversion therapy is meant to enforce that binary rather than the other way around. Weve had enough of that. It's a good start. And if we are trying to award art that is representational of everyone, then we need to be representing everyone, and abolishing gendered awards is one part of the change that needs to happen., Elsewhere in the show, THR associate editor Abbey White discusses the genres where gender exploration has taken place the most: science fiction and, perhaps surprisingly, animation. How did you hear about the role on Billions? Catch up on all the episodes of Hollywood Remixed, including last weeks conversation about Asian masculinity and the martial arts trope with Shang-Chi star Simu Liu, and subscribe to the show on the podcast platform of your choice to be alerted when new episodes drop. Youre right, its sort of this radical premise that was probably problematically intended, because this is the whole thing about comedy: Who is the butt of the joke and whats the intention and what were you trying to do? This is generally a setup to be like, is there something problematic you want to call out, but we dont have to put it that way. I am actually glad that people try. Everybody else around Pat was obsessed with Pats gender, which if you talk to trans people, non-binary people, thats kind of what the world is like now. (Laughs.). So thank you so much. Some of it feels a little weird. I was just thinking about Alec Baldwin because hes on the current cover of The Atlantic, and I was just thinking that we have to be able to laugh at someone like 45. 'Billions' Star Asia Kate Dillon Proves There's No Such Thing as Menswear The actor who plays Taylor from 'Billions' wears a seamless mix of clothes (labels like "menswear" and "womenswear". And then people respond. Im curious about whether you had any input in shaping that backstory, and would you be comfortable sharing whether or not any of it was informed or inspired by your own personal experience? Baby representation on TV has been a really interesting space in animation and live action. Before we get to our final two questions, I definitely wanted to make sure that we get to talking a little bit about your advocacy in the campaign to eliminate gendered award categories. There are two non-binary characters on that show ones named Joey, the other is Lindsay. If Im misgendered by someone who has just learned my pronouns and theyre obviously not doing it out of malice or to bully me, there is room for growth and learning, of course. Theres a tiny little calculator known as BMO who is genderless, because why wouldnt a tiny little calculator be genderless?, But White notes that representation of gender fluid characters in more grounded, realistic stories is necessary for affording gender non-comforming people their full humanity. There are certainly situations where Im not correcting people. So yeah, I think that would be a fun exploration, a modern exploration. GQ may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. And in terms of Bobbie, as soon as I saw Bobbie on screen, I was just like, This is so much of what I have been asking for in the sense that this is a character that people clearly are not trying to force one way or another. The pioneering actor tells Aaron Hicklin how they are harnessing empathy as a tool for change Sun 25 Mar 2018 04.00 . To revisit this article, visit My Profile, thenView saved stories. I think it really could go a long way towards dismantling a lot of the toxic masculinity as well as some of the limits that women have. He is a gay man of color, and one of the things that he said really stuck out to me, and that was that queer white people get to be queer, and queer people of color are people of color first, which means that society looks at our race before it looks at our sexuality. Back in 2016, fans of the critically acclaimed Netflix dramedy "Orange Is the New Black" were introduced to the character Brandy Epps, a member of the prison's white supremacy gang. I also think this conversation isnt just about who were seeing onscreen or larger cultural narratives changing. And thats what the term non-binary is about: Its more like a sphere that you can walk into, and it exists fluidly. Its so fun to play a character that doesnt use any machismo or bravado. In season two, we have Axe in that scene where Taylor introduces themself and says, These are my pronouns, and Axe just says, Okay. And Mafee is the other person in that scene, who we already know is sort of Taylors BFF, very quick BFF, so we see Axe accepting Taylor in that moment and just moving on and being like, Okay, on to business. And then there is Axe I think correcting Dollar Bill in a subsequent episode. White: This is really difficult because to have a line of appropriateness, you have to have roles. I was fine with it and excited for it. And I really think it is only a matter of time and truly not that long until the Tonys, the Emmys and the Oscars follow suit. Asia Kate Dillon attends the Season 5 celebration of "Orange is the New Black" at Catch, June 9, 2017, in N.Y. Taylor Hill/FilmMagic via Getty Images, FILE Hes an asshole, hes vindictive, hes also a human being. And I think thats part of the key to LGBTQ representation, the storied history of LGBTQ representation and definitely non-binary representation. Asia Kate Dillon was born on November 15, 1984 in Ithaca, New York, USA. And thank you so much for having me, Rebecca. Taylor is one of my all-time favorite TV characters brilliant, complex, surprising and about as moral as you can get on a drama about the cat and mouse game between billionaire financiers and the megalomaniacal government lawyers who love to hate them. I have always felt non-binary, before I had the language to conceive or communicate what that was to other people. Art is so valuable that I think its misuse is really dangerous. The discrimination towards trans people is rife, insidious and cruel, resulting in horrific consequences. Its very difficult for me to dismantle it, Ill be honest. I dont want to give an excuse and say trial and error, but you do see a lot of errors on the interminable road of progress. Do you have a job? I could use a little help and understanding: Is that the same as or different from or similar to gender nonconforming or genderqueer or gender fluid? Actor Asia Kate Dillon predicts that widespread scrapping of gendered entertainment categories is just a matter of time. White: Oh, absolutely. With Star Trek, just so people know when you talked about the first official representation of a non-binary character, that is Star Trek: Discovery, and that was just this past third season, an actor named Blu Del Barrio, who I believe is non-binary themselves, plays a character who is explicitly identified as non-binary. ", "I'm not [transitioning] to be interesting. Dillon is also the founder and the producing director of MIRROR/FIRE Productions. And I think just knowing that, understanding that, allows a possible road towards a way in which to approach conversation with a person who is coming from a totally different perspective, but who is holding it in the same place within themselves that you hold your beliefs. You could have an animated cartoon and you couldnt have two men kissing, but you could have a rabbit kiss a man, and that wouldnt be considered this alarming thing that immediately needed to be cut or censored. The people that I worked with, they saw that when I got onstage and actually got to live in the clothing that I wanted to be in. What is it like playing a nonbinary character in the hypermasculine world of Billions? But I think about Bugs Bunny. Why is it important to you to identify as nonbinary rather than to just expand the definition of what woman can mean? Like, what if I had to be in a place where my gender didnt align with something that somebody could immediately clock? Someone can have a beard and be trans. So it wasnt really a thing that had to get sorted right away. Twenty years from now, will acting be more gender fluid? Asia Kate Dillon talks about how landing a non-binary role on "Billions" has changed their career. The whole idea behind Steven Universe is an upending of gender expectation. But I also think that sci-fi and fantasy are about places of imagination and exploration, and in the same way that animation is this place where we do not have to exist within the limits of humanness, its an incredible place to explore lots of things, things that we want to see, things that we want to be. And its really this fluid space for this character. And I know that just from Instagram or reading something on Variety or Deadline or The Hollywood Reporter, thats the way that I learn about that. And you cant really ascribe their race to them. What we need to do is get rid of mens and womens sections and make sections that are like dresses for tall people, pants for short people, jeans for people with hips, you know what I mean? 107. My joy is real, but it is also fragile. Asia Kate Dillon is a fierce actor with arresting eyes and a buzzcut, known for breakout roles including a Nazi skinhead inmate in Orange Is the New Black and, currently, a calculating hedge-fund intern on Showtimes Billions. Its Pat. Thank you again. To the political leaders who work to criminalize trans health care and deny our right to exist and to all of those with a massive platform who continue to spew hostility towards the trans community: you have blood on your hands. Getting to wear drag is super fun. And the categories existing within the context of the awards show are exclusionary and it is erasure of anyone who exists outside of the gender binary. We also have Xavin, who is an alien but is a non-binary alien in Marvels Runaways. Sun: Asia Kate Dillon plays the genius hedge fund executive Taylor Mason on Billions, whose fifth season returned on Showtime Sept. 5. And if Taylor, if this fictional character can exist in this fictional world and has been brave enough to get up and get dressed and go out there into the world and be who they really are, then I can too. I told you, Im pretty careful about what I watch and what I listen to. Asia Kate Dillon is a performer, writer and director residing in New York City. This is who I am.. And theres good progress. In person, Dillon also exhibits an extraordinary amount of empathy: In conversation they (more on that pronoun in a bit) graciously express empathy for Donald and Melania Trump, and they show it whenas we grab a quick lunch for this interviewthey are approached by a rather bold young gentleman (who could have walked straight off the Billions set) for an all-too-presumptuously familiar chat. We want it to look hot. Dillon: I identify as non-binary. Sun: It was really enjoyable. Sun: It does. Dillon: Yes, I would say when I was first cast as Taylor and I was talking to Brian and David about the character, they told me that Taylor was going to be a major player in the show, that Taylor was going to play a really important role. Keanu Reeves had the idea for a character who wasnt going to take up physical arms in this movie, who had a different kind of power, a quiet power. To be here. Find Asia kate dillon stock images in HD and millions of other royalty-free stock photos, illustrations and vectors in the Shutterstock collection. Asia Kate Dillon was born on November 15, 1984 in Ithaca, New York, USA. And I was like, Oh, this wild, funny, sturdy, pink character is sort of embodying the ways that I think my gender presents, which is not a binary, its not clearly defined. How did you navigate that when you were younger? I know it saved my life years ago.". Prior to encountering the character breakdown for Taylor, I had been experimenting with removing she/her pronouns from online bio materials and just using my name, but frankly, the only trans people that I had been aware of prior to encountering Taylor had undergone some sort of either medical or physical change, whether it was taking hormones or some kind of surgery so that they could live fully as themselves in their identity. And so some folks have gotten the door to be able to play themselves opened sooner. And this is laced in very conscious, purposeful ways throughout the entire series. I mean, because the trick of Pat was Pat just was clueless. And what kinds of ongoing collaborations do you have with discussing this aspect of Taylors character and their storylines? ", "Finally undergoing bottom surgery has allowed me to confidently flourish in my new body and dismantle any remaining gender dysphoria. But there are a lot of people on that set. Sun: You are so gracious to lend your expertise to this topic. Theres a sweet, beautiful song. They have accumulated good wealth from their acting career. Its also been really incredible to see trans and non-binary people, particularly people of color, Black and indigenous people, having control of their own stories and being the ones who are writing them, directing them, producing them. But Id also argue that there are a lot of very recent newer cartoons, particularly childrens cartoons, that have followed in Steven Universes footsteps and are very consciously creating. I can't begin to express how remarkable it feels to finally love who I am enough to pursue my authentic self. Im preaching to the choir, obviously, but the more diverse your writers room is, your production team is, the more diverse your whole project is, the more accurate your representation will be. the government, the planet, the race forces her to undergo a conversion therapy of sorts to go back to a they, which is really interesting. Has the German word 'einfhlung' tattooed on the left side of their neck, which translates to 'empathy'. White: Yes! Its an umbrella term, and it describes anybody who may have a gender that doesnt really exclusively fall into male or female cisgender very specifically and who may identify somewhere in between that or beyond that. And so that really, depending on who youre talking to, will influence how they define non-binary and also how they describe their own gender. And there is a part of me thats like, Gosh, I wish I know its historically significant and extraordinarily important, and Im really proud of it, and there is something about it that feels a little bit tainted by the fact that GLAAD doesnt qualify it as trans representation. What kinds of conversations have you had with the showrunners, Brian Koppelman and David Levien, about how they even came to creating Taylor, who quickly became a major character in the universe? In As You Like It, I played the 90-year-old man. People keep talking about the niceness of Ted Lasso, but thats because were seeing men be nice, and thats considered radical. And how would we talk about Pats gender and Pats partners differently versus when we did it then? And then I dont know exactly when it happened, but I think probably last year, I cant pinpoint it exactly, I really came to an understanding that the choice between actor and actress in the context of award shows where those words only mean man/woman, male/female gender or assigned sex, asking non-binary or intersex or gender nonconforming people to choose between those categories is a false choice. Which show has better food? The Ellen DeGeneres Show (2003-2023) Jane Fonda ( Grace and Frankie (2015)); Asia Kate Dillon ( Billions (2016)); guest DJ Stephen Boss. I wasnt watching TV at that time, but when I got the audition I was like oh, I have to binge watch the whole thing. I've dealt with this feeling my entire life, and I know that I'm a woman deep down. And I was able to step into an identity, my non-binary identity, fully. ", "[As a model], I definitely don't want to tell trans people that they need to buy things in order to fully come into themselves as a trans person. Asia Kate Dillon appeared on the silver screen alongside Keanu Reeves in "John Wick: Chapter 3 Parabellum." In an interview with Insider, the actor revealed how they advocated to bring a bit of their own identity to their role as the Adjudicator in "John Wick." Min. Im curious, though, whether or not we will see a trickle-down effect to non-binary performers getting to play non-binary characters or whether their roles will be along binary lines. And also getting more creators who are non-binary. I feel like I can talk to Brian and David about anything, ask them anything. And its past time. When my contract was negotiated, I knew that there was a possibility for nudity. But I certainly know that my gender is not something, and thats what makes it clear for me. Check it out. We had Dillon in Issey Miyake in the middle of a busy street; Dillon in Maison Kitsun hanging off a rickety fire-escape. Sun: Thats a such a universal maxim. Sun: Lets go ahead and jump in then, since you brought up animation. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Post Malone, Riz Ahmed, Josephine Skriver, and More on the Fly Way to Dress Down This Summer. (Laughs.) Elliot Page, Laverne Cox, Josie Totah and more actors and influencers share important reflections and lessons from their experiences as transgender people. I think there are a lot of valid criticisms of that character and what it laid the groundwork for and how it embodied a lot of harmful treatment of gender and non-binary identities in Hollywood. Thats not something that they have to be. And the fact of the matter is whether youre talking about Star Trek or anything else, sensitivity has changed over time. Like, why am I a man? Dillon: Yeah, I think its essential. As soon as they enter the narrative, they are not binary. So now going beyond Billions and talking a little bit more about your whole career as well as the industry, in your experience and to your knowledge, how much opportunity is out there for non-binary or gender fluid or genderqueer actors to be able to also play non-binary characters? They went on to complete their graduation from the American Musical and Dramatic Academy. Im very curious to see what, for example, Joey Solloway, who I think is probably the most prominent non-binary creator in Hollywood they made Transparent and were a very respected indie film director prior what they will do now that they have come out specifically as non-binary and how to advocate for more voices in that space. In animation, because it doesnt have to ascribe to the physical realism that exists in live-action film and TV, you can be super expressive, they say, pointing to Cartoon Networks Adventure Time among other recent examples. Weve had Axe very matter-of-factly correct peoples pronouns and things like that. We have one character that I really, really love, Bobbie Yang from Rutherford Falls. And shes kind of sturdy. Taylor Mason (Asia Kate Dillon) has come a long way from first joining Axe Capital as an intern, working for Bobby Axelrod (Damian Lewis). I'd done research into the term genderqueer and I'm still in the processes of trying . You know its interesting that people think that pants are masculine. To some people it feels a little dated, but I think that is really kind of the conversation that were having about the history of non-binary identity. Last Call with Carson Daly (2002-2019) Actress Abigail Spencer ( The Sweet Life (2016) and Timeless (2016)); actress Asia Kate Dillon ( Billions (2016)); band Partybaby perform. And so its really interesting to see some cool stuff thats happening in animation, very specifically in childrens animation, thats breaking that down and arguably at the forefront of our conversations about non-binary identity and gender non-conforming identities.