Laverne Cox and Baby Reindeer Star Nava Mau Cried Together on the Emmys 2024 Red Carpet
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Nava Mau and Laverne Cox had a heartfelt exchange about their experiences as transgender actresses on the Emmys 2024 red carpet.
The Baby Reindeer star and the trailblazing Orange Is the New Black actress first shared a wordless, emotional hug before Cox expressed her love for Mau, saying “I’m so proud of you.”
“Ten years ago I became the first openly transgender person being nominated for an acting Emmy,” the E! Host continued. “Ten years later, I’m not the last. You’re the fourth, and you’re the first in this category.”
Mau is nominated for Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series for her role as Teri in the Netflix limited series Baby Reindeer. While Cox pointed out that a number of trans people have been nominated for Emmys for performance, none have ever won, meaning that Mau would be the first out trans person to ever win an Emmy for performance.
In response to Cox asking, “How special is that, for you to be making history?” Mau answered by redirecting the question slightly. “I think that what we’ve been fighting for in the community is to be able to tell stories that come from the heart and that are based from a human foundation,” she said. “Because that’s who we are as trans people: we are humans, first and foremost.”
Mau went on to say that she feels that as much as Baby Reindeer is worth celebrating for its LGBTQ+ inclusion, the “best thing” would be to celebrate the fact that “it’s also a really good show and it’s something I’m very proud of.”
“Ultimately, I hope that we continue to get to be all that we are as trans people on screen,” Mau concluded. Cox agreed, adding that getting to illustrate trans people’s humanity is part of “what is so beautiful about being an artist and getting to tell stories.”
At the end of their touching interview, Cox asked Mau about her look for the evening. As it turns out, the Baby Reindeer actress was wearing a custom gown by Drag Race fave Gigi Goode, showing that her commitment to platforming trans excellence goes all the way down to her choice of dress — or as Mau put it, “It’s giving T4T tonight.” We absolutely have to stan.
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