GLAAD blasts “sensationalistic” gender reassignment film
"Tomboy, A Revenger's Tale" sees Rodriguez's character undergoing gender reassignment surgery
GLAAD has spoken out against an upcoming thriller starring Michelle Rodriguez, which sees the bisexual actress undergoing gender reassignment surgery against her will.
Tomboy, A Revenger’s Tale will star Rodriguez as a male assassin who is fooled by gangsters into being captured by “The Doctor,” played by Sigourney Weaver, who performs gender reassignment surgery to transform the hitman into a hitwoman. Hollywood Reporter states that Rodriquez’s character will then seek revenge on Sigourney’s doctor. The film is due for release in 2017 and is penned and directed by Walter Hill (The Warriors, Alien vs. Predator).
Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, GLAAD’s director of programs for transgender media Nick Adams slammed the project.
“We haven’t read the script, but it’s disappointing to see filmmakers turning what is a life-saving medical procedure for transgender people into a sensationalistic plot device,” he said. “We are at a crucial moment in the public’s understanding of transgender issues, and stories like these have the potential to undermine the progress we’ve worked so hard to achieve.”
Earlier this year, GLAAD’s 2015 Studio Responsibility Index report determined that 17.5-percent of films released in 2014 contained LGBT-identified characters. Of that, the vast majority were gay male characters, while GLAAD could identify no transgender-identifying characters.
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