Ryan Murphy and Janet Mock Talk of Episode 4 Shocker of Pose – Deadline

SPOILER ALERT: This article contains important information about tonight's episode pose.

The episode of tonight FX pose Had everyone grabbed his pearls and gasped with disbelief? Entitled "Never Love has never been loved as before", one of the series' favorites and the most virulent characters has been attacked and murdered. Rest in peace, power and pageantry, Candy.

Played by the impeccable Angelica Ross, Candy's death is more than a death. It's a moment of reflection and call to action at a time when more and more trans women of color are being murdered. The news is always buried and the names are forgotten. This year alone, 13 trans women of color were killed: Dana Martin, Jazzaline Ware, Ashanti Carmon, Claire Legato, bookseller Muhlaysia, Michelle "Tamika" Washington, Paris Cameron, Chynal Lindsey, Chanel Scurlock, Zoe Spears, Johana " Joa 'Medina Leon, Layleen Polanco and Brooklyn Lindsey were all from different ages and regions.

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The co-creator of the series, Ryan Murphy, directed the episode tonight and co-wrote it with Janet Mock. They felt that they had to tackle this problem that rarely sees the light of day. At the same time, they knew that they had to subvert the trope "burying / killing your homosexuals" which was often the norm on television and in movies. The trope refers to an LGBTQ character in a movie or TV show being murdered in the service of a heterosexual character's plot. This gives the impression that LGTBQ lives are more sustainable than their hetero co-stars. Of course, the trope "Bury your gays" explains how the narrator frames it, but most often, Hollywood tends to frame it in an undesirable light.

Murphy and Mock had a hard time plotting, which was inevitable given the period of the show when many members of the LGTBQ community were dying of HIV / AIDS and murder. One thing they did not want to validate a homophobic cliché – and the load was lightened with their room writers inclusive and empathic. the pose The filmmakers and writers told Deadline how they thoughtfully shed light on the issue of the murder of trans-colored women and added hope to this emotional episode by celebrating the family, the culture of the ballroom, the ferocity and the undeniable beauty of Candy.

DEADLINE: What was the conversation that led to this episode, Candy's bow and her ultimate death?

JANET MOCK: Once we have been picked up for the second season, [we knew] that we should lose one of our main characters. We were quite sure that we did not want it to be necessarily linked to the HIV / AIDS epidemic at the time. Instead, we wanted to really focus on the epidemic of violence that transgender women are facing, not only at the time, but today. And we wanted to illustrate what a loss looks like for this community in a very deep, hard-hitting and grounded way.

Our most difficult thing was what character. So once we've determined which character – and Ryan really planned it in his head – we sort of traced the first half of the season about losing Candy and really showing what it would look like . This has led us to show one of his first scenes in the first, to talk about what are wasted funerals and bullshit, because the dead person can not read everyone himself. So we knew we were going to make this step more surreal by allowing her to talk to everyone that meant something to her. So that's how the idea was born.

DEADLINE: Why Candy?

MOCK: We have this duty and the burden of occupying this space on television so accessible to millions of people, that our viewers have to watch, be in the process of introducing themselves to this world and to the world. these characters, they need to also feel this loss … someone who was loved, someone who stole scenes and someone who lived through these iconic moments of the series. So, as we had all these touchstones with her for 11 episodes, we knew that she was the right person.

DEADLINE: You said that this season was like losing a character, but when you started the series, were you already sowing that seed?

RYAN MURPHY: As Janet said, there are two epidemics in this show. The HIV / AIDS epidemic and the epidemic of violence against transsexual women. I think we have always been aware of it – dangers and injustices. During the first season, we all felt, collectively, in the writers' room that we did not want to do anything for free. We wanted you to know the characters, we wanted you to invest in them. Because I feel so often the trope of "kill your LGBTQ characters". Sometimes as a plot point, as opposed to a character development point.

We were all somehow upset when the show aired last season and so many people who liked the show were on social networks and said, "Oh, Stan will kill Angel. I do not know if I can look at that. That will kill me. It became such an online epidemic that we went on to say, "We do not kill anyone. We are not killing Angel, so you can relax in the narration. "

But, early in season two, we thought it would be irresponsible not to tell the truth about the second epidemic, namely violence against trans women. So we started to draw that. When Candy speaks in the funeral home and says that funerals are a waste of time for the dead because you can not hear anyone talking about you, we started talking about it so that everything is profitable.

DEADLINE: How did Angelica react to the story?

MURPHY: We did not take that for granted and took it very seriously. We had a conversation with her, who was so brilliant in the episode, very early in writing, and we said, "We want to do that. How do you feel? Do you want to support it? What do you think? She thought it was a very important thing to dramatize. I think when you watch these characters on TV, they become your friends. I know it from Joy, that this character, Kurt Hummel out there, really helped gay kids and families, and I think pose do the same thing with families.

We spent a lot of time talking about it and making the plan and working with the actors. It is important to talk about this issue in our culture when so many trans women are killed and make headlines. At best, they are on page 24 in a newspaper and then, the next day, they are gone and forgotten.

DEADLINE: How did you prevent Candy's death and funeral from falling into the trap "Kill your LGTBQ character"?

MURPHY: We really wanted an episode that will take you beyond the headlines. I mean, the thing I think Janet and I and the writers are most proud of is that we guide you through the process: how do you claim the body? What does it mean to walk and see your friend and sister in a coffin and take charge of that narrative and make sure that person looks like what she wants to be? So how do you inform parents and families? These are things you have not really seen on TV, I think, about how we handle this death.

THE DEADLINE: It was really a shock that Candy was dead – and there was a part of me that did not believe that it was really happening. But when it was shown that she was really dead, you went into this fantastic story where her mind came back and somehow reconciled with almost all the main characters. What was the conversation about creating this fantastic world where Candy will come back?

MURPHY: Well, I think two things. I think we can all understand this universal idea of ​​not telling people that you love them enough or appreciate them enough when they are alive, right? Everyone feels it. They say, "Oh, I would like to be able to say something. I would have liked to be able to let them know. So that was our starting point, that is, would not it be great if she could introduce herself and have conversations with people? And not only talking about his identity, but also his power, his need and his desire to be seen and respected? All these things.

DEADLINE: Have you looked for something to inspire the fantasy of his return?

For me, as a director, one of the things I really thought about was And all that as a kind of dreamlike quality and ends on a sort of triumphant note. I think while we were writing this text, Janet and I always wanted to make sure that Candy's character was still seen – as in this scene with the parents. What you see in our show is the first excerpt of these wonderful actors. It was a room full of people. They received ovations from the cast after each take.

We also had the following idea: "I would have liked my parents to tell us." It's not just a trans person, but a child who wants to feel loved and seen, but not only of his parents, but of the whole world. . I hope that this scene, in particular, will trigger many conversations. The thing we know pose do people watch it as a family? The young people are watching with their parents. It's always a show that is a good remedy – if you want. He is an instructor. This is a healer. I think all these people participated in its creation and structure.

But there is somehow a theatrical fantasy, but that's what the ballroom is. Ballroom goes into a space and says, "I am this. I want to be seen like that "and be respected for that. While in the real world, you are not. I loved the fact that Candy is one of the runners of our episodes during the first two seasons, she is very thirsty for fame and she has a lot to offer, she is considered to be acquired and she is n & rsquo; Is not entitled to be all that she wants to be in the world. I love this last scene that Angelica plays so nicely where she sings this song and gets those perfect 10s, finally. I think a lot of people will relate to this idea.

MOCK: Also, for us, you have this great moment, where you said, you went through moments of total fright, at first, then denial. You did not think she was really gone. I think everyone has this first reaction when we see his body. You hope – because our show hopes so – that when it disappears and the girls can not find it, it will appear, then they will tighten it. Maybe she was scared, then she will not undress anymore and not put herself in these situations. So, there is this sense of that.

Then we also lay the groundwork for our third episode. We have Candy, who is also aware that the systems are not fair, and she introduces them to Euphoria, played by Peppermint, and we see the brutality that transgender women face in the hands of men. You see her being beaten in this car. You see her being thrown away. You see her being arrested and beaten up. So we have to show all the things that we do not necessarily want to show to our beloved Candy because people are interested in it too much. But people can now imagine, right? They can imagine the brutality of his body. They can imagine the violence in this hotel room, they can imagine the idea of ​​a John who throws it and throws it into a closet.

DEADLINE: You talked about losing earlier and wanting to qualify Candy's death. How did you put this story on the page?

For us, the care goes in the direction of, what do our people do after we have been found? How do they deal with this loss? As Ryan said, what does it look like to go claim that organization whose system says you do not have any rights right away, even if you are his real family? What does it look like to contact parents who have not even spoken to her, who do not know her as a woman? What does it look like to reconcile all this pain? We see Lulu for the first time without Candy and it's a waste. Because since the beginning of the show, these two women are together. They started a house together, they were sisters together in Abundance and all those girls were Elektra's daughters … and now she's gone. What does a farewell look like?

So, all of these things, I think that says a lot about intentionality and thoughtfulness, especially in the writers' room, and the number of drafts we needed to process it. I think it's probably the most revised scenario we've ever developed after last season's pilot project.

THE DEADLINE: The biggest shock of Candy's death was that she had so much story to tell.

MOCK: That's all. Right? It's like you still do not know Candy enough. I feel like we're still meeting her a little bit. Who are these parents? Where does it come from? Did she grow up in New Jersey? You want to know more. But that's what happens. It's as if these women were stripped and you did not know all that. At the same time, we put responsibility in the most gentle and gentle way towards the public, to think about how we lose our staff – and that's what happens every day, from the time to today. 'hui.

DEADLINE: pose is changing the game of LGBTQ storytelling and has achieved many firsts in the industry. You have both entered a space mainly occupied by white and heterosexual cisgender men. In this aspect, you are considered a pioneer. Do you have the pressure and burnout of the pioneers because of your responsibility to the LGBTQ community?

MURPHY: For me, I do not do it. But I also do things for which I feel I use any power or money in the bank, so to speak, giving a chance to the people of the generation below me. That's Janet in my book. She has this incredible and revolutionary new business at Netflix. So, no, I'm never exhausted when I have the opportunity to raise people I love, who, in my opinion, can change the world. If it was not in the cards, maybe.

I started on TV in 1998. I remember that on my first show, I did not have the right to have a gay character. I came into this set, I was the only homosexual to come out of a crew of 500 people. So I look at what has happened in the last 20 years and I marvel at that. To be honest, it was a fight. I was not content with anything, I have to fight. I was fortunate to have in my corner some great people who believed in me. But none of this has happened without cost – and it certainly has taken me a lot.

But I feel very fortunate and fortunate to be in this position to be able to do such shows and give to people like Janet and Steven [Canals] Opportunities. So this, in itself, is energizing. What I like poseFor me, it's like I really feel like passing the torch and saying, "Well, now you're running." That's what we feel on this set, Janet and Steven write, realize, They are the boss, they call the blows, it's a blessing and a miracle for me as I lived in a time when it could have happened, from what I started.

MOCK: As for me, I think that if I had another showrunner, I might feel that feeling. But Steven and I do not have to argue over the stories we want to tell. Our showrunner has been involved since the beginning and the team of people he has recruited and brought as collaborators is on the same page. Our space is very intentional, the way it was built.

Even when we spoke with Angelica, this first time, to let her know that we were going to lose Candy, she never thought to herself. She thought of serving the story. And what she does well in this episode is that she uses every inch of her experiences and talent to tell this story, as do all the other actors who are featured. Everyone has given so much of themselves.

So for us, I think we are pioneers in this space, but we have to do it together. I know that I look a lot like Mother Blanca here. But that's true. We do not feel alone and do it in a vacuum. We feel like a team and a family of collaborators and people who together want to tell the best possible story. And when we give it to the public, they swallow it, like a biscuit in sauce. They love it and they kiss it and they watch it again and again and they tweet us. So we just feel the love and the affirmation.