The OITNB star spoke about the power of playing Black queer characters and the aftermath of being outed in a recent interview with Buzzfeed
BY ELLA GAUCI, IMAGE BY DREAMSTIME
Samira Wiley, known for her breakout role in Orange Is The New Black, has recently spoken about the power of playing Poussey Washington and also the experience of being outed on the show. Speaking with Buzzfeed, the queer icon expressed the love she has for the fan-favourite character.
“I’m a firm believer that there’s a path for me, and Poussey was on my path,” she explained. “She was supposed to be a part of my life, and that’s how I found her. I feel incredibly blessed to have played that character.”
It was in fact on the OITNB set that Samira met her future wife Lauren Morelli, who was a scriptwriter on the show. In the writer’s room, Lauren began to reflect and explore her own sexuality while delving into the characters. “I’ll never be the same because of Poussey being in my life,” Samira continued. “She’s also the reason I have a wife and a family, to be very honest. It’s something that actors dream of — to have a role like that, to be on a show as impactful as that.”
While Samira has been open about her sexuality in recent years, when she first starred on the show she was not out. Samira revealed that she had been outed by a castmate on the WNYC Nancy podcast in 2018. Reflecting on this experience to Buzzfeed, Samira said: “When anyone is outed by someone else, it can mean so many different things, especially in certain parts of the country and within certain mindsets, it can literally mean danger.”
She continued: “But ultimately, even with me, it means that someone took something from you. That was not that person’s to give away. To make that declaration, regardless of what everyone might have thought at the time, that was mine. I wasn’t able to present it in whatever way I wanted to.”
The star also spoke about the power of playing Black queer roles, especially in projects such as The Handmaid’s Tale where Samira played the character of Moira. She said: “What a gift it could be, for me as a Black queer woman, to play a Black queer woman on TV.”
Reflecting on the future of Black queer representation, Samira said: “I just want us everywhere. I feel like we’re in an era where there’s real consciousness in trying to cast queer people in queer roles. I also want queer people to be able to play their straight icons.”
She also cited KStew’s new film Love Lies Bleeding as an example of what she wants to see more of in queer films. “I saw it, and I wouldn’t call it a queer story. It’s just their story. That’s just who they are. It’s not a point in the plotline, it’s not some struggle. I’ve never seen anything like that before, where their sexuality isn’t the central thing we’re talking about.”
“I’m done with queer tragedy stories, and I’m done with Black tragedy stories.”
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