Aneesh Sheth is opening up about her experience on the upcoming Red, White & Royal Wedding.
The 44-year-old Trans actress is reprising her role as Secret Service agent Amy Gupta in the Red, White & Royal Blue sequel, and has revealed the behind-the-scenes was not that great for her.
On Friday (September 11), Aneesh returned to Instagram to share a video and commented on what she went through while working on the upcoming movie.
The video features a woman talking about people “antagonizing” Elliot Page‘s recent comments about not booking work since The Odyssey. She talks about how Trans people face discrimination in the employment, “even in creative spaces.”
“I can’t even begin to tell you how I was treated on my last film,” Aneesh commented on the video, referring to Red, White & Royal Wedding, which wrapped filming earlier this year.
“Huge pay disparity, disrespect, invalidated, silenced…I could go on. In a place I thought would have my back,” she continued. “Aside from that one job I haven’t worked in over 4 years. I had a casting director flat out tell me people aren’t hiring trans actors because producers think of us as a liability. My friend sent this link to me and I’ve been off IG but I had to come on here and share this.”
One of her co-stars in the movie, Ian McIntyre, replied to her comment, writing, “You dont deserve any of it, and anyone who knows you knows that you should be treated so much better. But the only way any of it gets any better is unfortunately calling them out for what it is. We’re all here for you though Aneesh, and no one can blame you for some social media timeout, think it does anyone good to get away from it all. You know I’ll always back you”
She then replied to him, “and you KNOW first hand. I’m so grateful you always had my back and were and continue to be so supportive. One good thing came from that – a true friend. Love you babes!!!”
Another person replied to Aneesh‘s comment, asking, “Why does that [casting] director think you’re a liability?”
“with everything going on politically, hiring a trans person for a film/tv show could potentially alienate audiences slash not be lucrative. It’s ridiculous,” Aneesh said. “I’ve worked in this industry for almost 30 years. And now I’m being told I can’t get work simply because of who I am.”
The actress’s comment started going viral on social media, with Red, White & Royal Blue fans showing their support for her, with some asking others not to send hate to any of the other actors in the movie, as her comment seems directed at executives and behind-the-scenes people, not the cast.
She later took to her Instagram story to express her gratitude for all of the support she’s received since her initial comment.
“I wanted to come on here, and I just wanted to say thank you,” she said. “I’ve seen the comments, I’ve seen the DMs, I’ve seen the posts on Twitter. You know, honestly, when I made that comment on that reel, I was just trying to support Elliot‘s experiences, and I’m sure many experiences of other Trans actors in this industry with the lack of opportunity, the lack of work, the lack of visibility.”
“I didn’t realize it was going to blow up that much and I really can’t say anymore right now,” Aneesh continued. “But I hope when the time comes, I’m able to share more of my experiences. But, in the meantime, I just wanted to come on here and I wanted to say thank you. I’ve seen them all. I really appreciate all of the love and support. It really means a lot to me. So, thank you.”
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