Transgender author Janet Mock just announced a groundbreaking new deal with Netflix.
The writer, producer and director of Ryan Murphy’s Pose said it will be a ‘first of its kind’ deal for a trans woman of color.
‘I am announcing my overall deal with Netflix,’ she said in a video posted to Twitter. ‘This deal is so bonkers!’
She then added: ‘I, of course, will be writing and directing and developing a few hush-hush projects that I can’t really talk about.’
Mock revealed one of them is a half-hour drama series, while another is a series set in college about a young transgender woman. There will also reportedly be a series about New Orleans after the abolishment of slavery, as well as a ‘reboot of a classic sitcom’.
‘This is the first deal of its kind for a trans person, no less a trans woman of color,’ she said. ‘There’s potential now with Netflix’s worldwide audience to introduce hundreds of millions of viewers to trans people.’
She said it’s also about ‘showing people who may not understand us that we can tell our own stories’.
Today, @JanetMock makes history as the first Black trans woman to establish an overall deal with a major studio.
“…there’s potential to introduce hundreds of millions of viewers to trans people, and showing people who may not understand us, that we can tell our own stories.” pic.twitter.com/nXhaW0STvo
— Strong Black Lead (@strongblacklead) June 19, 2019
The deal is a three-year contract that gives Netflix the exclusive rights to television projects from Mock, as well as a first-look option on feature films, according to Variety.
Janet Mock smashing stereotypes
Janet Mock was the first transgender woman of color to direct an episode of television.
Glee creator Ryan Murphy asked Mock to direct an episode of his hit show Pose, based on the ballrooms of 80s New York City.
Janet had already been serving as a writer on the show. However, she admits to initial reservations about taking on directing opportunity, due to her lack of experience behind the camera.
‘When Ryan asked me to do it,’ Mock said. ‘I said, “I have no idea how to direct a television episode!”
‘He told me he had no clue what he was doing when he started working on Nip/Tuck. But he just figured it out – and nobody understood the characters better than I did,’ she said.
Mock then added: ‘On the first day of filming, he gave a speech to the cast and all of the hundreds of extras in the ballroom letting them know that it was a historic night – and asking them to support my vision.’
She also added: ‘When we wrapped the episode a few weeks later… I sobbed. There are too few women who have had the opportunity to direct. It’s such an honour to be among the ones who have.’
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