Two of the stars of the new series Hacks, Carl Clemons-Hopkins and Johnny Sibilly, joined The Morning Beat on Audacy's Channel Q to discuss Pride, how being visible helps the community and their amazing on-screen relationship in the new show on HBO Max.
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At the onset of Hacks, the impact of the show didn't really hit Clemons-Hopkins and Sibilly until later on. “At first it’s kind of like, oh yeah it’s just a job," Johnny said. "That doesn’t even come into the mix until later when you start getting the messages and the things like that where you realize you’re part of a bigger picture."
"It really does feel great, especially because you’re telling stories," Sibilly continued. "A lot of them are groundbreaking, but some of them are just regular, mundane, and the boringness of being queer, which is fun too because every story doesn’t need to be groundbreaking. Sometimes our stories just need to be told in the most normal, whatever that means, in ways that make it so relatable to not only our queer family, but everyone else too.”
The two then spoke about what Pride Month means to them, especially in light of Florida recently passing a bill barring transgender girls and women in public secondary schools and colleges from participating on girls' and women's sports teams.
“Honestly, it’s a reminder to simply show up for the community and continue fighting,” Clemons-Hopkins said. “We see how far they’re willing to go in their fear so we need to go even further in our pride.”
For Sibilly, it also serves as an opportunity to help mentor young individuals. “I feel like it’s important for anyone that’s young to know that it’s a journey," he said. "If you see me dancing in front of protestors, just know I wasn’t always that comfortable in my own skin to do something like that.”
“Reach out to people that are near you and take baby steps. You don’t have to be on a Pride float and be loud and proud just yet. Just take your time, but we’ll be here to support you no matter what and through whatever step of the journey.”
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