Billy Porter Declares: “It’s A New Day”

Pose’s game-changing Golden Globes nominations prove it…
 
Few television performances were as memorable in 2018 as Billy Porter’s turn on FX’s Pose. His Pray Tell was one of the standouts on the groundbreaking series, which is packed full of dynamic characters.
 
In December, Porter was nominated for Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series–Drama, for the 2019 Golden Globes. The series itself was nominated for Best Television Series–Drama. In case you’ve been living under a rock, Pose, which hails from Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Steven Canals, is an ensemble drama set in the 1980s. The series, which made history with the most-ever transgender series regular cast members, follows several LGBTQ characters in the world of African-American and Latino ball culture.
 
“It did take my breath away,” Porter admited when asked about his nomination. “I’ve been in this business a really long time. Artists, we don’t do it for awards, but it’s very – it’s really nice. It’s just really, really nice. I’m so grateful to have lived long enough to see the day when stories about my community are at the front and centre. It’s amazing.”
 
These nominations prove that, as Porter says, “it’s a new day.” The Golden Globe nominations showed that there is a future for queer representation in Hollywood.
 
“Especially right now when so many marginalized people are being marginalized even more by our leaders, it’s really.… Art is always the place that sort of softens the heart,” Porter says. “It pierces through; it changes the molecular structure of human beings when they can relate to a story. There’s empathy that evolves, [and] I’m so humbled to be a part of that storytelling. To have it be recognized is icing on the cake.”
 
Pose wasn’t the only breakthrough diversity in this year’s crop of nominations. Crazy Rich Asians picked up a handful of nominations, as did Black Panther. And the ceremony (which will be held on January 6 in Beverly Hills) will be hosted in part by Sandra Oh, a nominee herself; she’ll be the first Asian person to host the show.
 
As for what’s ahead in Pose Season 2, well, Porter is tight-lipped. “You know we’re not allowed to tease nothing,” he says with a laugh. “I’ve got to keep my job, honey!”