Tessa Thompson is immensely proud of coming out.
Actress Tessa Thompson, who recently appeared on Variety’s Just for Variety podcast, shared that she feels tremendous and empowered for the LGBTQ fans who have dared to come out to the world and open up about their sexuality.
The actress opened up about her sexuality in 2018 stating that she is interested in both men and women after she appeared in Janelle Monáe’s ‘PYNK’ video and fans started to speculate that they were together. Tessa during an interview with Net-A-Porter in 2018 said that in her family one is allowed to be anything they wish to and then revealed that she was attracted to both genders and stated that they do not discuss it. Tessa further mentioned at the time that she wants everyone else to have the same freedom and support that she has had from her family and loved ones.
Tessa Thompson mentioned during the Variety podcast that there have been so many incidents where people have written to her and said that they have been able to come out to their family and called it a "dream".
Tessa Thompson portrays the character of Valkyrie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and was recently seen in ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’. Her character is the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s first LGBTQ superhero, making her first appearance in Thor: Ragnarok in 2017. Tessa Thompson said that there is something powerful about seeing oneself reflected in any way on a big screen, but people know that there are some ways that matter because the audience does not have it all when the interviewer said to her that as an artist who lives their truth as a queer person is saving lives.
The actress said that the industry puts a tremendous amount of pressure on stars to expect them to fit into a particular mold, especially when it comes to sexuality. She added further that she feels really lucky that she has been able to work in real proximity to people that she thinks to want to advocate for her to be just the way she is and be the fullest expression of herself. Tessa added that there is a tremendous amount of work to be done and she feels lucky to exist inside of a professional space, personal space, or even familial space where she feels that she is loved and supported for who she is.
Tessa further added that she is aware that it’s a privilege that not all people might have or share, so for the ones who do not have space, she wants them to know that she sees them. Talking about Valkyrie, who is now King Valkyrie, Tessa Thompson added that she is free, she is out there ready to fall in love, but only when the time is right. She added that she feels that the part of being able to normalize queer or LGBTQIA characters on-screen is to allow them to exist in their humanity.
The actress also shared about working with Michael B. Jordan, not only as a co-star but also as a director, to which she said that he welcomed her feedback as they started to develop the story and her character, which is Bianca. Tessa said that she wanted to make sure that Bianca is not a character who is just moving forward in the movie but she has something interesting to do and explained that she usually does this work with writers, but for Creed III, she was able to dwell in with Michael B. Jordan and added that he gave her a lot of freedom to improvise on the day. During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, she talked about how working with Christian Bale was for her, to which she said that the actor was only intimidating between action and cut, otherwise he was really lovely and easy to work with.
Tessa added that during a fight scene between Valkyrie and Gorr, God of Butcher, played by Christian Bale, he was so lovely as he would come back to check on her constantly to make sure that she was comfortable and okay. Additionally, she added that the actor has a wonderful capacity to transform from being overly present and talkative while out of character to become absorbed in it and added that in such a sense, he has such acting skill. Though some may assume he would be willing to do so, the fact is that he didn't. Tessa said that he can switch it on and off, and while he is inside of it, he is completely immersed. Then he'll be spending time with his children or chatting about the surf and his weekend activities. He, therefore, gets to know you authentically in between takes.
With two TV projects currently in progress, Tessa Thompson established a production company called Viva Maude in 2021 and inked a first-look agreement with HBO and HBO Max. Marvel Studio's 'Thor: Love and Thunder', starring Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tessa Thompson, Christian Bale, Taika Waititi etc. is out in the cinemas.
