Pose (TV series)

Pose (stylized as POSE) is an American drama television series about New York City's African-American and Latino LGBTQ and gender-nonconforming drag ball culture scene in the 1980s and, in the second season, early 1990s. Featured characters are dancers and models who compete for trophies and recognition in this underground culture, and who support one another in a network of chosen families known as Houses.
Created by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, and Steven Canals, the series premiered on June 3, 2018, on FX. The series stars an ensemble cast including Evan Peters, Kate Mara, James Van Der Beek, Mj Rodriguez, Dominique Jackson, Billy Porter, Indya Moore, Ryan Jamaal Swain, Charlayne Woodard, Hailie Sahar, Angelica Ross, Angel Bismark Curiel, Dyllón Burnside, and Sandra Bernhard.
The first season was met with critical acclaim and subsequently received numerous award nominations including the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Drama and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama for Billy Porter. In 2019, Porter was awarded the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series – the first openly gay black man to be nominated for and win in an Emmy lead acting category. The series was nominated for Outstanding Drama Series at the same ceremony. 
The second season premiered on June 11, 2019, to further acclaim. The third and final season premiered on May 2, 2021.
Premise.
"Pose" season 1 is set in 1987–88 and looks at "the juxtaposition of several segments of life and society in New York": the African-American and Latino ball culture world, the downtown social and literary scene, and the rise of the yuppie Trump milieu.
The second season begins in 1990. More of the characters are now either HIV-positive or living with AIDS. Some have become AIDS activists with ACT UP, and everyone is now attending frequent fundraisers, funerals and memorial services for their many friends and lovers in the community that has been hard-hit by the AIDS pandemic. With the release of songs by Madonna, Malcolm McLaren, and others, some aspects of the ballroom dance styles begin to go mainstream, and members of the community find new opportunities as dancers and dance teachers. Others are working as dominatrices and strippers.
The final season begins in 1994, with Blanca focuses on balancing her life as nurse aide, a mother and present partner to Christopher, her new love who works in the same hospital as hers. The season also focuses on the reassembly of House of Evangelista due to Lemar's father role in the unruly new group House of Khan, and Pray Tell's health scare.
Production.
Development.
On March 16, 2017, it was announced that FX had given the production a pilot order. The pilot was written by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, and Steven Canals all of whom were also set to executive produce alongside Nina Jacobson, Brad Simpson, and Sherry Marsh. Production companies involved with the pilot were slated to consist of include FX Productions and Fox21 Television Studios. In October 2018, it was reported that Leiomy Maldonado and Danielle Polanco would be choreographing the series' ball scenes and that Janet Mock and Our Lady J had joined the show's writing and producing staff.
On December 27, 2017, it was announced that FX had given the production a series for a first season consisting of eight episodes. On May 9, 2018, ahead of the series premiere, Murphy announced that he would be donating all of his profits from "Pose" to non-profit charitable organizations that work with LGBTQ+ people, including the Sylvia Rivera Law Project, the Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund, and the Callen-Lorde Community Health Center. Murphy explained this decision saying, "The thing that struck me in talking to so many of them, was how much they've struggled, how under attack they feel, how many of them find it difficult getting healthcare, and finding jobs. I just decided I need to do more than just making a show for this community. I want to reach out and help this community." On July 12, 2018, it was announced that the series had been renewed for a second season which premiered on June 11, 2019. On June 17, 2019, FX renewed the series for a third season. In March 2021, FX confirmed the third season would be its last. The final season premiered on May 2, 2021.
Casting.
In March 2017, Ryan Murphy and his team began casting for the series. On October 25, 2017, it was announced that transgender actors MJ Rodriguez, Indya Moore, Dominique Jackson, Hailie Sahar, and Angelica Ross and cisgender actors Ryan Jamaal Swain, Billy Porter and Dyllón Burnside had been cast in main roles. The series' production team claimed that they had assembled the largest transgender cast ever for a scripted series. The series was expected to include over 50 transgender characters total. On October 26, 2017, it was announced that Evan Peters, Kate Mara, James Van Der Beek, and Tatiana Maslany had also joined the main cast.
On December 27, 2017, it was reported that Maslany had exited the series following the redevelopment of her part into that of a 50-year-old African-American woman. The character was then recast with Charlayne Woodard assuming the role. On September 19, 2018, it was announced that Sandra Bernhard would reprise her role of Nurse Judy in season two as a series regular. On March 23, 2019, at PaleyFest, Ryan Murphy revealed that Patti LuPone will guest star in the second season.
Filming.
Production for the series' pilot began in New York City in October 2017. The following episodes of the first season were expected to begin production in February 2018. Murphy directed the series' first two episodes and Mock directed the sixth, thus making her the first transgender woman of color to write and direct any episode of television. On March 14, 2020, production on the third season was suspended due to the COVID-19 health crisis.
The third and final season's filming wrapped on March 20, 2021.
Release.
Marketing.
On April 12, 2018, FX released the first teaser trailer for the series. It was also announced that the series was set to premiere on June 3, 2018. On May 3, 2018, the first official trailer was released.
Premiere.
On May 17, 2018, the series held its world premiere at the Hammerstein Ballroom in Manhattan. On July 23, 2018, Dyllón Burnside emceed a benefit concert, duetting with co-stars Billy Porter and Ryan Jamaal Swain to celebrate the season one finale, and raise money for GLSEN. During the event, a conversation was held between Burnside and former "Vibe" editor-in-chief Emil Wilbekin, where Burnside discussed his coming out story and spoke about the importance of safe spaces for LGBTQ people. Later on in the evening, Porter sang from his latest album and MJ Rodriguez sang "Waving Through a Window" from "Dear Evan Hansen".
In March 2019, the series was part of the Paley Center for Media's annual Paleyfest LA at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California.
"Pose" premiered in the United Kingdom on March 21, 2019 on BBC Two, also being available on the BBC iPlayer in full.
Season 2 premiered on BBC Two on October 26, 2019. As with season 1, the full series was also made available on BBC iPlayer.
Influences.
While a work of creative fiction, the series is "heavily inspired by" Jennie Livingston's 1990 documentary, "Paris Is Burning"; Livingston also serves as a consulting producer on the show. Several of the houses and characters are based on, or named after, real people, and several people featured in the documentary also make cameos in the series, such as Jose Gutierez Xtravaganza, an icon of the voguing scene, who plays a judge throughout the first series, and Sol Pendavis Williams, of the House of Pendavis. Creators and producers of the series such as "Murphy, Canals and writer/producer Janet Mock all consider "Paris Is Burning" a text that helped inform not only the show, but also their identities when they first saw it."
Reception.
Critical response.
Season 1.
On the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds a 96% approval rating with an average rating of 8.3/10 based on 82 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Charged with energy, poise, and confidence, "Pose" pirouettes between artistic opulence and deliciously soapy drama to create a fresh new addition to Ryan Murphy's lexicon." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the first season a score of 75 out of 100 based on 27 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
In a positive review, "Vanity Fair"s Richard Lawson was effusive describing the series as "an engaging portrait of dark days met with merriment. Pain and perseverance are sewn together to create something humble yet fabulous—and, it should be shouted over all the show's loud and glorious clamor, very much long overdue." In a similarly favorable critique, "Vulture"s Matt Zoller Seitz praised the series' ambition, aesthetic, and spotlight on minorities saying, "it shows American audiences a world that has never been visualized on television at this length and at such an obviously grand budget level. The camera swings and swoops, glides and tumbles as in a Scorsese epic like "Gangs of New York"; in both the outdoor street scenes and indoor crowd scenes, it's obvious that FX has spared no expense to get the clothes, the cars, the streets, the business signs, and even the distinctive yellow-brown glow of streetlights correct." In a more mixed assessment, "Newsday"s gave the series two-and-a-half stars out of four and described it far less approvingly saying, "good intentions don't always lead to good TV, and a couple episodes in, that appears to be the case with "Pose". This certainly isn't bad TV—Murphy isn't about to leave his longtime home with a turkey—but it's often bland TV, and oddly enough, stock TV." In a negative evaluation, "Slate"s Willa Paskin was outright dismissive saying, "It's a TV show from one of the most canny creators working today, yet as a viewing experience it can feel like an object lesson." She continued on specifically criticizing the show's character development saying, "So many of the people on "Pose" are strong women, trans paragons, and this comes at the expense of them being recognizably flawed human beings."
Season 2.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the second season holds a 98% approval rating with an average rating of 8.39/10 based on 40 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "A delightful, delicate dance of light and dark, "Pose"s second season achieves a striking balance between the grittiness of reality and the glamour of the runway and shines even brighter." On Metacritic, season 2 holds a score of 79 out of 100 based on 14 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews."
Season 3.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the third season holds an 100% approval rating with an average rating of 7.8/10 based on 14 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Though it's entirely too short, "Pose"s final season is a joyously entertaining celebration of life that is not to be missed." On Metacritic, season 3 holds a score of 72 out of 100 based on 7 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews."