Last month, there was tremendous buzz and excitement when FX announced that Ryan Murphy’s pilot for Pose had the largest transgender cast ever for a scripted series – five transgender women of color playing five series regular roles.

In celebration of Trans Awareness Week, EW today shared the first photo of these talented actors – in character – direct from the set where filming is taking place. 

(photo by David Miller)

MJ Rodriguez (Blanca) is a theater and film actress who has appeared on Nurse Jackie, The Carrie Diaries, and Luke Cage, and was recently featured with Indya Moore (Angel) in Saturday Church at the Tribeca Film Festival. Dominique Jackson (Elektra) is a fashion model and icon in the current New York ball scene, who also appeared in Oxygen’s Strut. Hailie Sahar (Lulu) has been seen on Mr. Robot. And Angelica Ross (Candy) was the star of the Emmy-nominated web series Her Story and recently appeared on several episodes of Claws.

This cast represents an historic moment in authentic trans representation in Hollywood. But transgender people aren’t only in front of the camera. Pose also includes talented trans people behind the scenes helping to craft the stories these talented actors are portraying. Co-executive producer Silas Howard is a transgender man and an accomplished writer, director, and producer. Our Lady J, a trans woman and a writer on Amazon’s Transparent, is also a producer and in the writer’s room, alongside New York Times bestselling author and trans advocate Janet Mock. Leiomy Maldando, a trans woman and a legend in the New York ballroom scene, is the choreographer for the show along with Danielle Polanco.

When the casting news broke, GLAAD President and CEO, Sarah Kate Ellis said:

“Hollywood has a long history of misrepresenting LGBTQ people of color, especially transgender women, and Pose is primed to change that by showing audiences and the industry that trans stories are powerful, relatable, and entertaining. With Ryan Murphy’s smart decision to cast talented trans actors like Angelica Ross in front of the camera, and gifted trans storytellers like Silas Howard and Janet Mock behind the camera and in the writer’s room, the show is poised to bring trans inclusion and understanding to the next level.”

GLAAD’s recent Where We Are on TV report counted 17 transgender characters across broadcast, cable, and streaming platforms during the reporting period. However, two shows with transgender characters have since been cancelled leaving only 15 current transgender characters on TV.

Pose is set in Manhattan in the 1980s, and delves into a variety of cultures including the famous New York ball scene. These talented trans people will be joined on screen by Billy Porter, Evan Peters, Tatiana Maslany, James Van Der Beek, Kate Mara, and many stars who GLAAD has worked with in the past.

Pose show creator Ryan Murphy received his first GLAAD Media Award at the 11th Annual GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles in 2000 for his show Popular. Murphy also was honored in 2010 for Glee, in 2013 for The New Normal and American Horror Story: Asylum, and in 2015 for bringing a beautiful version of The Normal Heart to HBO.

“Pose” star Angelica Ross called for more trans visibility earlier this year when receiving a GLAAD Media Award with Trevor Noah for her appearance on The Daily Show.