Studying Time: 3 minutes
Laverne Cox has come out with a vital collection at a vital time.
Clear Slate, which premiered on Amazon Prime Video on February 6, stars the Orange Is The New Black alum alongside George Wallace.
Laverne reached deep into her personal childhood ache to inform this humorous, uplifting story.
However she hopes that it will have a therapeutic impact upon viewers. Particularly now, at a time when her story is so painfully related.
In ‘Clean Slate,’ Laverne Cox stars as a lady reconnecting — and reintroducing herself to — her father in her hometown. It’s a very private story for the actress. (Picture Credit score: Amazon Prime Video)
Laverne Cox and George Wallace star in ‘Clean Slate’ on Prime
Clear Slate is a brand new collection of Prime Video. The present stars Laverne Cox as Desiree, the estranged grownup daughter of Harry Slate, portrayed by George Wallace.
Desiree returns to her small Alabama hometown the place Harry lives and owns a automotive wash. Funding for her artwork gallery in New York has fallen by, and her go to residence turns into an prolonged keep.
The catch is that she isn’t simply taking part in catch-up on life occasions. She is a transgender lady, and till the second of their reconnection, her father has solely recognized her as his “son.”
Chatting with Folks alongside the premiere, Laverne expressed how utilizing very actual tales of what it means to be trans in our deeply transphobic society additionally means having the ability to “explore healing” and humor on the present.
Laverne defined how she took her personal “contentious, conflicted relationship with home” and the “trauma of my childhood.” She then made them “quite hilarious for the show.”
Historically, real-life trauma is a serious supply of inspiration for comedy. That’s as true for Clear Slate as it’s for the majority of stand-up comedy. In the end, Laverne hopes that that is “healing for the audience.”
A part of the story of ‘Clean Slate’ entails Laverne Cox’s character connecting together with her hometown’s neighborhood after many years of absence. (Picture Credit score: Amazon Prime Video)
Laverne Cox is aware of how important tales like ‘Clean Slate’ are proper now
Although revisiting some features of her childhood was “triggering, almost every day,” Laverne Cox is aware of that it’s for an excellent trigger. And never solely in service of the present itself.
CNN reported on her statements elsewhere about what it means to make a collection like Clear Slate at a time when the worst political figures on the planet are utilizing the LGBTQ+ neighborhood — and significantly the trans neighborhood — as a scapegoat and a malicious rallying cry.
“In terms of the trans aspect of it, we’re experiencing the most intense backlash against trans visibility that I’ve seen in my lifetime,” Laverne acknowledged.
“You know, the Republican Party spent $215 million on anti-trans ads in this last election,” Laverne Cox cited. “And if you watched, you would think the last election was about trans people and immigrants.”
“Executive orders limiting our rights, 26 states banned gender affirming care for young people, banning us from the military, from bathrooms,” she listed grimly. “There’s this whole anti-trans thing, and we’re less than 1% of the population.”
Referring to a current response to the bigoted anti-trans backlash, Laverne famous: “Someone in my comment section said, ‘They’re worried about the wrong 1%.’” (The fitting 1% being billionaires, a few of whom are actively dismantling the US authorities as we communicate)
Although lots of her real-life experiences had been painful, Laverne Cox channeled trauma into comedy for ‘Clean Slate’ … and hopes that the collection has a therapeutic impact upon viewers. (Picture Credit score: Amazon Prime Video)
‘They’re frightened concerning the flawed 1%’
“In 2025, as federal bans come down attacking trans people, what I love about this show and what I love about being an artist is that artists can be arbiters of empathy,” Laverne expressed. She identified that empathy “can foster humanity.”
She acknowledged: “Trans people have been so deeply dehumanized over the past several years.”
Laverne then affirmed: “Art, getting to know trans people as people, is a way to re-humanize.”
