Editor's note: The video attached to this article refers to Miss Benny using they/them pronouns, as it was filmed shortly before she came out as a transgender woman.
Miss Benny is feeling glamorous.
After four years in the making, Glamorous finally debuted on Netflix in June, just in time for pride month. The series follows the story of Marco Mejia (Miss Benny), a young gender non-conforming person who lands a job working for legendary makeup mogul Madolyn Addison (Kim Cattrall).
Through his queer perspective, Marco works to transform the fashion industry. Miss Benny says that through her own perspective as a trans person, she was able to transform the role.
Miss Benny on Hit Netflix Show Glamorous
"I brought so much of myself to Marco," she tells Sonia Baghdady of Advocate Now. "I wanted to sort of show people what it's like to be not just a flamboyant and vibrant person, but also what happens when that person goes home and takes to make a bath and goes on dates and all of the other amazing things that you experience as somebody like Marco."
Through Glamorous, Miss Benny has been able to work with one of her longtime idols, Kim Cattrall. She shares that after she learned Cattrall would also be starring in the series, she "almost fell out of my chair," as she "just idolized her so much." In fact, Cattrall's Sex and the City character, Samantha, was the inspiration behind some of Miss Benny's previous work.
"Anyone who's a fan of Sex and the City and her portrayal of Samantha Jones will love her as Madolyn Addison, because I, as a fan of her, enjoyed every moment watching her play the character," she says, continuing, "It's cool for someone like her who's just so iconic and so accomplished to sign on to a show like ours because it really validates that this is a story that's very fun to tell."
To Miss Benny, the story of Glamorous is one centered around queer joy. She hopes that the many queer characters featured on the show will give viewers insight into their own lives, particularly young queer kids who, like her, "didn't have a lot of examples of queer joy."
"I hope that queer people, queer kids, anyone who might relate to Marco, will see that Marco is somebody who is being celebrated, who is living a joyful life and thriving," she says, adding, "I live a wonderful and special life, and I go to the grocery store and I watch TV shows when I come home, and I want people to see that that's something that queer people can also do and be happy doing."
For more interviews like these, watch Advocate Now on The Advocate Channel.
