The Marvel Cinematic Universe introduced its first ever transgender character in season 3 of Jessica Jones, released on Netflix on June 14.
In a major step towards trans inclusion, show runners added the character of a transgender assistant at Jessica’s detective agency, played by the openly trans actress Aneesh Sheth.
Sheth, who is originally from Pune in India but moved to America as a child, said it had been an “exciting” opportunity to play the character of Gillian in the final season of the show.
“I am transgender and the character of Gillian is also trans. But there’s no mention of her being trans within the show, nor a narrative around her identity,” Sheth said in an interview with iNews. “Which I think is wonderful because trans people exist in the world and it’s not always about their [trans] narrative.