Modern Family casts ‘TV’s youngest transgender actor’ Jackson Millarker for one-off episode tonight
The eight-year-old stars as Tom who makes friends with Mitch and Cam’s daughter Lily
MODERN Family producers have cast someone believed to be TV’s youngest transgender actor to star in a one-off episode that airs tonight.
Jackson Millarker, who is eight-years-old, will play the role of Tom who makes friends with Mitch and Cam’s daughter Lily.
In the episode, which is called A Stereotypical Day and airs tonight in the US, Mitch and Cam, played by Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Eric Stonestreet, let Lily, played by Aubrey Anderson-Emmons, to invite her transgender friend Tom over for a play date.
Their pride at raising an open-minded daughter soon diminishes when Lily insults her new friend, but they use the incident to teach her about acceptance.
The show's director Ryan Case, took to Instagram to post a pic with Millarker with the caption: "This is Jackson Millarker. He's 8 years old, from Atlanta, and just happens to be transgender.
“He plays Lily's friend Tom in this week's Modern Family and he's wonderful. One of the many reasons I love being a part of this show."
Jackson’s casting is a huge step for the transgender community and comes just a few weeks after Transparent star Jeffrey Tambor spoke about in his Emmys acceptance speech.
Transparent is an Amazon comedy drama that revolves around a family in Los Angeles and their lives following their discovery that their father Mort, played by Tambor, is transgender.
Speaking after he received the award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy, Tambor said he believed Hollywood should hire more transgender actors to play transgender roles.
He said: "Please give transgender talent a chance. Give them auditions. Give them their story.
I would not be unhappy if I were the last cisgender male to play a female transgender on television.”
Modern Family” has had 77 Emmy nominations and taken home 22 of the awards.
The sitcom, which airs on ABC, is tied with Frasier for most wins in the Outstanding Comedy Series category.
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