Trans actor Zach Barack is opening up about his own frustrations when it comes to LGBTQ+ representation in studio films, including Marvel.
Barack was touted as the first openly trans actor Marvel hired for their cinematic universe after he played Peter Parker’s classmate in Spider-Man: Far From Home.
But now, three years later, when asked about Marvel’s extremely gradual inclusion of LGBTQ+ characters in their films and TV shows, Barack admitted to Digital Spy that what Marvel Studios has done is “not good enough.”
“I don’t know how to tell someone to care, but they should,” he said. “It’s the right thing to do. And it matters. It matters more than anything. Be a human being, and look out for other human beings.”
“And if you’re really on my team like you’re saying you are, then show up and play the game,” he added.
Barack also expressed disappointment in Warner Bros. Discovery’s shelving of Batgirl, which would have featured a trans character but instead was locked up to reportedly never be released — something many have theorized is for the sake of getting a tax break.
“It all boils down to what we value — which is not femininity,” he suggested. “That’s where hating trans people, in a lot of ways, comes from — that we don’t want people to act less than what we see, which is often masculinity. Which is why it’s a lot less dangerous to be a trans guy than it is to be a trans girl or a trans feminine person.”
At the end of the day, Barack believes that it’s important for executives who claim to be allies to just “be brave” and choose inclusivity and shifting the culture over immediate ticket sales.
“Do something in the world, so that when you die, you’re like, ‘I’m glad I tried that,’ and don’t regret not doing it,” he said. “Just be a good person.”
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