Ian Alexander: Life in Color After starring in The OA — his first role, and one that made waves for trans representation on TV — the actor bares all about his chosen family, the life-changing nature of his rise to fame, and next moves. "It felt like a way to make him complex in a new way than anything we've seen in a video game. ""I do know my character will be a lot of people's first exposure to trans masculine people in the media, so I do recognize how important that is ... but I don't feel special, necessarily, because this is something that is long overdue. "Harmful stereotypes, while less common than they once were, are certainly not fully retired.Anneliese Singh, associate dean of diversity, equity and inclusion at the University of Georgia College of Education, who hasn't played "The Last of Us Part II," said media, including video games, can often fall into portraying stereotypes. "I definitely understand that and empathize with that. "Hashimoto said he would rather have seen Lev tell his own story or have his gender identity be part of the game's subtext, rather than such an explicit part of the storyline. save hide report. He said he feels his involvement is helping to move gaming inclusivity forward, but he said he's able to walk this path only because other transgender people, particularly Black trans women, have long fought for a seat at the table. Ian Alexander returns as an older, wiser version of Buck, but the young actor also takes on a second role as Michelle, a new character whose sudden … 133 comments. He is voiced and motion captured by Ian Alexander. Joel and Ellie are living in a small town with other uninfected people, and life appears to be starting anew.

"Positive representation humanizes trans people for those who are outside of the community, opening up dialogue and allowing for empathy," Gory said. "Alexander also understands the criticism and acknowledged that for some people, the storytelling devices used for Lev can be triggering, but he added that every trans person's experience is different and that for him, Lev feels like real representation — not a stereotype. "There was a pitch to make a trans character, and we felt like we can make it work with Lev," he said, adding that making the character trans would give the siblings a reason to be running away from their religious tribe. Old. By Kalhan Rosenblatt The messages Ian Alexander has received from fans about the transgender character he plays in the new blockbuster video game " The Last of Us Part II " … 2 months ago. "It made me think about how seeing a character like that when I was younger and coming to terms with my gender might have been so comforting and validating and how I didn't have that," said Alexander, 19. For example, there were "zero transgender-inclusive films from the major studios" in 2018, according to a That having been said, the stakes are high when it comes to the limited representation that is out there. Both games are set in a pandemic-ravaged apocalyptic America where the deadly Cordyceps virus has turned a majority of the population into violent, mindless zombies.The first game is played from the perspective of Joel, a smuggler taking Ellie, a teenage girl who is immune to the virus, to a rebel militia in hope that their doctors can use her immunity to find a cure. Being deadnamed sucks, and playing through a game where a character is deadnamed doesn't feel good," he said, adding that the game should have had some type of warning before scenes that could be traumatic for transgender players.The game's strict embargo meant reviewers couldn't include information about Lev's being trans until after it was released. Had that information been available ahead of time, Hashimoto said, players could have prepared themselves for potentially traumatic scenes.Other trans gamers echoed Hashimoto's criticisms, saying they, too, were hurt by the deadname use and other devices used to tell Lev's story.Ben Roswell, 22, a trans man, said he was also bothered that Lev wasn't given the chance to tell his story, saying the depiction would have been "miles better" if the character had been given that opportunity.