Jameela Jamil has come out as queer in response to the backlash after she was cast on HBO Max’s new ballroom voguing competition show, “Legendary.”
In a lengthy Notes app message posted to Twitter with the title, “Twitter is brutal,” Jamil, 33, began, “This is why I never officially came out as queer.”
“I added a rainbow to my name when I felt ready a few years ago, as it’s not easy within the south Asian community to be accepted, and I always answered honestly if ever straight-up asked about it on Twitter.”
“But,” she continued, “I kept it low because I was scared of the pain of being accused of performative bandwagon-jumping, over something that caused me a lot of confusion, fear and turmoil when I was a kid. I didn’t come from a family with *anyone* openly out. It’s also scary as an actor to openly admit your sexuality, especially when you’re already a brown female in your thirties.”
Jamil then announces that she’s taking a break from Twitter, writing, “I don’t want to read mean comments dismissing this. You can keep your thoughts.”
Addressing the specific critique she faced when her role on “Legendary” was announced, Jamil continued, “I know that my being queer doesn’t qualify me as ballroom. But I have privilege and power and a large following to bring to this show … Sometimes it takes those with more power to help a show get off the ground so we can elevate marginalized stars that deserve the limelight and give them a chance.”
Jamil cites “my 11 years of hosting experience, being fully impartial … and being a longtime ally of the LGBTQ community” as her qualifications for her inclusion in the show, adding that she is “a newcomer to ballroom (like much of the audience will be) and therefore a window in for people who are just discovering it now.”
“To the press,” her note concludes, “I really don’t want to talk about it. Let’s just focus on the contestants of the show until it’s out.”
Initially, much of the backlash focused on Jamil’s supposed role as MC of the show, which she insisted she was not, blaming, in turn, Deadline — who initially reported the news — and HBO.
“Transparent” star Trace Lysette weighed in on the broader issue, writing, “I interviewed for this gig. As the mother of a house for nearly a decade, it’s kind of mind-blowing when ppl with no connection to our culture get the gig. This is not shade towards Jameela, I love all that she stands for. If anything I question the decision-makers.”
Per Jamil, “Legendary” begins shooting Friday.