Madonna may have been accused by some critics of cultural appropriation with her 1990 hit “Vogue,” but that doesn’t mean she’s not welcome on the set of Pose, the FX series about New York’s LGBT ballroom scene in the 1980s.
Ryan Jamaal Swain, who stars on the show as a young man who runs away to New York City to become a dancer after his parents throw him out of the house for being gay, tells The Hollywood Reporter that he wants the “Material Girl” to make an appearance during their second season.
“Madonna, you gave us ‘Vogue,’” Swain said Thursday night at the opening gala of Outfest, Los Angeles’ annual LGBT film festival. “You gave us that moment … I just want you to bring your butt and be a part of Pose. We love you and we adore you.”
FX announced Wednesday that the series — co-created by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Steven Canals — was getting a sophomore season. “Filming should begin this winter,” Swain said.
The show, which premiered five weeks ago during Gay Pride Month, has made history for having the largest cast of trans actors on a scripted television series, which includes Mj Rodriguez, Dominique Jackson, Indya Moore, Hailie Sahar and Angelica Ross.
“There has been an abundance of young people who have come up to me and cried and said, ‘Because of you, I came out to my family,” Swain said. “The show has touched so many lives. I want all the young people to know that I love you and I see you and I hear you. I want all the young people watching the show to know that they have a voice.”
Pose can be painful at times — literally. Swain showed up at Outfest with a cast on his wrist. “I was on set dancing on the season finale and my thumb went one way and my hand went the other way,” he explained. “I chipped my base bone in my thumb.”
And then he added with a smile, “But it’s worth it.”
