Ian Alexander (actor)
Ian Alexander | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 20, 2001 Salt Lake City, Utah, USA |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Actor |
Ian Alexander (born April 20, 2001) is an American actor. They are known for their[a] roles as Buck Vu on The OA, as Lev in The Last of Us Part II, and as Gray Tal on Star Trek: Discovery.
Early and personal life
Alexander was born in Salt Lake City, Utah,[1] to a white father and a mother of Vietnamese descent who migrated to the United States from Vietnam.[2] Due to their father's work with the Department of Defense, their family often moved and has lived in places such as Hawaii, Japan and Washington, DC.[3] During elementary school, they would participate in community theater and chorus.[3] He received viral attention online through his photo response to a transphobic incident perpetrated by four UCLA college students.[4]
Though he was raised in a Mormon family, he is not a participating member.[5] He came out as transgender in 2014;[6] his pronouns are he/him and they/them, and they are non-binary and pansexual.[7][8]
Career
Alexander's debut acting role was on Netflix's The OA, where he plays Buck Vu. Buck, like Alexander, is also a transgender youth and was partially based on Alexander's real experiences.[6] He was cast from an open casting call online that spread through Tumblr.[8][9][10] Later he was cast in the 2018 feature film Every Day, based on the book by David Levithan, playing Vic, a trans teen whom the spirit "A" inhabits for a day.[11] In October 2017, Naughty Dog announced Alexander had joined the cast for The Last of Us Part II, the sequel to their popular video game.[12] He played Lev, a transgender character in the game.[13]
In June 2019, to mark the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots, sparking the start of the modern LGBTQ rights movement, Queerty named him one of their Pride50: "trailblazing individuals who actively ensure society remains moving towards equality, acceptance and dignity for all queer people".[14] Similarly, Alexander was one of the cover stars for them.'s 2019 Pride issue, "spotlighting three rising queer artists whose work and lives are breaking new ground for LGBTQ+ visibility".[15] In March 2020, it was announced Alexander will star in the independent film Daughter.[16]
In September 2020, it was announced Alexander had joined the cast of Star Trek: Discovery; he plays the first transgender character in the Star Trek canon.[7][17]
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016–2019 | The OA | Buck Vu | TV series; main cast | |
| 2018 | Every Day | Vic | Film | |
| 2020 | The Last of Us Part II | Lev | Video game; featured voice and motion capture role | |
| 2020–present | Star Trek: Discovery | Gray Tal | TV series; recurring | [18] |
Notes
References
- ^ Azzopardi, Chris (February 15, 2018). "16-Year-Old Trans Actor Ian Alexander Is Bringing Queer Power to the Big Screen". Into. Retrieved October 31, 2018.
- ^ Ramos, Dino-Ray (April 2, 2019). "The OA's Ian Alexander Is The Future Of Trans Visibility In Hollywood". Deadline. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
- ^ a b "Q & A with The OA's Ian Alexander". Angry Asian Man. December 21, 2016. Retrieved October 31, 2018.
- ^ Karlan, Sarah (May 19, 2016). "People Can't Handle This Trans Teen's Response To This Viral Anti-Trans Photo". BuzzFeed. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
- ^ Alexander, Ian (January 27, 2017). "I'm Ian Alexander/Buck! AMA : TheOA". Reddit. Retrieved October 31, 2018.
- ^ a b Weik, Taylor (February 2, 2017). "Meet The OA actor who wants to help pave the way for trans representation". NBC News. Retrieved October 31, 2018.
- ^ a b Ennis, Dawn (November 5, 2020). "Transgender Actor Ian Alexander, The Newest Star Trek Star, Didn't Get The Part He Auditioned For". Forbes. Retrieved November 14, 2020.
- ^ a b Walker, Harron (December 22, 2016). "The OA's Ian Alexander on His Big Acting Debut and Trans Representation". Vulture. Retrieved October 31, 2018.
- ^ "Casting Call: Netflix series seeks Asian Transgender Teen". Angry Asian Man. August 25, 2015. Retrieved October 31, 2018.
- ^ Houlihan, Ryan (December 28, 2016). "How Netflix's Newest Teen Actor Landed His Job on Tumblr". Teen Vogue. Retrieved October 31, 2018.
- ^ Dresden, Hilton (February 15, 2018). "Watch This Exclusive Clip From Every Day Featuring Trans Actor Ian Alexander". Out. Retrieved October 31, 2018.
- ^ Naughty Dog [@Naughty_Dog] (October 30, 2017). "Ian Alexander is Lev. #TheLastofUsPartII" (Tweet). Retrieved October 31, 2018 – via Twitter.
- ^ Rosenblatt, Kalhan (July 8, 2020). "The Last of Us Part II brings queer stories to a pandemic-ravaged dystopia". NBC News. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
- ^ Reddish, David (May 24, 2019). "The OA's Ian Alexander is making it safer for trans teens to come out & parents to accept them". Queerty. Retrieved June 8, 2019.
- ^ "Welcome to Our Pride Issue, Featuring Ian Alexander, King Princess, and Chika". them. June 21, 2019. Retrieved June 21, 2019.
- ^ Ramos, Dino-Ray (March 10, 2020). "Casper Van Dien, Ian Alexander, Vivien Ngô, Elyse Dinh And Megan Le Join Corey Deshon's Thriller Daughter". Deadline. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
- ^ Ramos, Dino-Ray (September 2, 2020). "Star Trek: Discovery Introduces First-Ever Non-Binary And Trans Characters With Blu Del Barrio And Ian Alexander". Deadline. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
- ^ Vary, Adam B. (September 2, 2020). "Star Trek: Discovery Makes Franchise History With First Trans, Non-Binary Characters". Variety. Retrieved September 6, 2020.
External links
- Actors of Vietnamese descent
- 21st-century American actors
- American non-binary actors
- American television actors
- Actors from Utah
- LGBT entertainers from the United States
- Transgender rights activists
- Transgender non-binary people
- Pansexual people
- LGBT American people of Asian descent
- American people of Vietnamese descent
- 2001 births
- Living people
- LGBT people from Utah
- Transgender and transsexual actors