Non-Binary Actor Liv Hewson On Inclusion In Hollywood

Star of the hit series Yellowjackets Liv Hewson, has touched on the significance of non-binary award categories within the film industry and the significance of gender-affirming care as being a “freeing” experience. 

Working amongst Hollywood’s greatest for the past seven years, Hewson has worked with big names in the industry, including alongside fellow Aussies Nicole Kidman and Margot Robbie (Bombshell) and Drew Barrymore (Santa Clarita Diet). 

Hewson has been an advocate for inclusivity and breaking the gender binary within the industry, recently speaking with Teen Vogue on their personal experience in discovering and affirming their gender expression. 

‘I Have Just Never Been Happier’

Explaining their discovery of the term ‘non-binary’ in 2012, Hewson was immediately drawn to the term following years of “inarticulate distress” and “alienation” from gender dysphoria. However, being only sixteen at the time and not being able to properly address their gender identity, a wave of euphoria came from their recent top surgery.

“I cannot tell you the complete, fundamental shift that I have felt in the year since having surgery,” says Hewson. “I knew that I wanted top surgery for a decade; it’s the longest I’ve ever thought about doing anything.”

“I stand differently, I walk differently, I carry myself differently… I have just never been happier. I’ve never been more centred. I’ve never felt more stable and present and alive.”

Pointing out the bigotry and misogyny before and after their surgery, Hewson notes the current discourse around gender-affirming care is shrouded in fear. 

“When people talk about gender-affirming surgery using words like “mutilation,” that’s not very nice,” Hewson explains. “Is that how you think about people who’ve had surgery for other things? It’s a disgust reaction, and I do not take disgust into account as a legitimate point of discourse.”

“It’s a squeamishness about medical intervention. I think the idea of making legislative or cultural decisions in and around [that] is laughable” – discussing the current political attacks on trans, non-binary people and gender-affirming care in the US. 

Noting much of this ‘fear’ around surgery comes from cis-gender people calling their surgeries “painful and scary”, Hewson corrects them saying it was painful before and now they’re finally able to be themselves. 

“Everybody else’s concern for me has been on delay. There’s no need to be concerned anymore. That’s so freeing.”    

Gendered Award Categories

With the Primetime Emmy Awards expected later this year, Hewson decided to withdraw their name from nominations due to their “bewilderment” of still seeing gender-separate categories. 

With the recent Tony Award wins of nonbinary actors J. Harrison Ghee and Alex Newell, Hewson expresses their love in seeing the actors be able to speak about their identity on stage with such profoundness. 

However, the feeling of potentially seeing an award with ‘actress’  was not something that Hewson chose to participate in.  

“My issue is so structural, I don’t think it would be honest for me to attempt to work within this system,” they said. “You’re putting me in the woman one, giving me the best woman award, then I get onstage and thank you. I’m not going to do that.”

“We take for granted that this is how the world should work, but gender-neutral awards exist in every category but this one… Isn’t it a little bizarre that there’s one job that’s about men and women and the rest of them aren’t?”

Non-Binary

Hewson believes there’s been such a ‘disconnect’ in the mainstream awareness about non-binary history, that their identity is often misconceived.    

“The way that nonbinary people are discussed, as we enter mainstream awareness, is completely ahistorical. That’s a shame in so many ways. It’s a disconnect to our history, and it’s used as justification to dismiss us,” says Hewson.

Discussing that Demi Lovato recently reclaimed she/her pronouns a year after coming out as non-binary, Hewson stood up for Lovato saying the hate following that choice was “in bad faith.”  

“So often what I see is a desire to not have to think about it: “I don’t want to have to think about gender or anyone else’s pronouns.” Why is thinking about it uncomfortable? Why is thinking about it bad?”

With Hewson’s personal experiences surrounding gender, they encourage people to start having these discussions of identity with themselves. “I have spent the last decade of my life thinking about [gender identity] — longer than that, since before I knew what “it” was, and I’m okay, so maybe you should,” they said.

“​​Maybe it’s a net positive for everybody to think about it a little bit.”