Transgender actress slams new movie for portrayal of trans women

Transgender actress Jen Richards has hit out at the casting of new movie Anything, after its trailer premiered online.

Jen, who says she auditioned for a role in the movie, is angry a non-trans actor landed the part.

Actor Matt Bomer plays Freda Von Rhenburg in Anything, a movie about a prostitute who forms a relationship with a straight man.

It been criticised for its casting and showing trans people as sex workers.

The trailer premiered this week.

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In a series of posts on Twitter, Jen Richards, who appeared in Caitlyn Jenner's I Am Cait reality show and has a role in musical drama Nashville, criticised Hollywood's portrayal of the transgender community.

"It's only casting a man that creates that drama," she wrote online.

"The whole premise is, 'OMG a straight dude likes a trans woman! What does this MEAN?!' That's the big conflict. So of course they cast a man."

She says the movie's casting stereotypes transgender women.

"The whole exercise presupposes trans women are just men with good hair and makeup," she says.

The movie, which is due for release later in 2017, has drawn controversy since it was announced in late 2016.

Actress Jamie Clayton, who is also transgender, clashed with Matt Bomer on Twitter at the time.

Avengers star Mark Ruffalo, who is an executive producer on the movie, defended casting Matt Bomer in August last year.

"To the trans community. I hear you. It's wrenching to you see you in this pain. I am glad we are having this conversation. It's time," he wrote on Twitter at the time.

"The movie is already shot and Matt poured his heart and soul into this part. Please have a little compassion. We are all learning."

Behind the scenes, however, trans talent has been used on the film with composer Isley Reust having scored the movie.

"As a trans woman myself and as a trans woman who wrote the music for this movie, I'm very thankful to have been given the opportunity," she wrote on YouTube, among critical responses to the trailer.

"I've been playing music for over 20 years and it wasn't until recently in the last two years that people started believing in me and my work.

"Nobody wanted to take a chance on me before and it was because of me being trans. So for that I'm extremely grateful for them giving me the break I've been working towards for 20 years."

Newsbeat has contacted the film's distributor for comment but they have yet to respond.

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