Laverne Cox as Gail

Laverne Cox is a three-time Emmy®-nominated actress, Emmy®-winning producer and a prominent equal rights advocate and public speaker.

Cox’s groundbreaking role of Sophia Burset in the critically acclaimed Netflix original series Orange is The New Black brought her to the attention of diverse audiences all over the world. This role lead to Cox becoming the first openly transgender actress to be nominated for a Primetime acting Emmy® and made her the first Trans woman of color to have a leading role on a mainstream scripted television series.

Cox is continuing to expand her presence on the big and small screens with diverse and groundbreaking roles. She recently appeared in the romantic comedy Can You Keep a Secret with Alexandra Daddario. Her upcoming films include Justin Simien’s independent film Bad Hair and the action comedy Jolt alongside Kate Beckinsale, Bobby Cannavale and Stanley Tucci. In addition to the seventh and final season of Orange is the New Black, Cox can currently be seen in Netflix’s Dear White People, HBO’s A Black Lady Sketch Show and guest starring on Jordan Peele’s sci-fi anthology Weird City for YouTube.

An artist and an advocate with an empowering message of moving beyond gender expectations to live more authentically, Cox is the first openly transgender person to appear on the covers of TIME Magazine, British Vogue, Cosmopolitan magazine and Essence magazines among others. She was named one of Glamour magazine’s 2014 Women of the Year. Cox also proudly holds two SAG Awards, winning them with her Orange Is the New Black cast mates for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series. Other accolades include a Critic’s Choice nomination for Best Supporting Actress, and consecutive NAACP Image Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.

Cox’s Emmy®-winning documentary Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word helped lead her to Executive Producing two powerful documentaries. The upcoming Disclosure: Trans Lives on Screen is an unprecedented, groundbreaking look at the depiction of transgender characters throughout the history of film and TV; Free CeCe tells the story of CeCe McDonald, a transgender woman who was controversially sentenced to 41 months in a men’s prison for second degree manslaughter after defending herself against a racist and transphobic attack. The documentary focuses on McDonald’s case, her experiences while incarcerated and the larger implications of her case for the transgender community and for communities of color at large.

Cox currently has several projects in development.