It’s been two years since the drama surrounding the potential film, “Rub & Tug,” gained headlines. At that time, the film was best known because it was set to star Scarlett Johansson in the incredible true story of a trans man in 1970s Pittsburgh. As you might expect, people were upset at the idea of Johansson, a cis-female, playing a trans man in a feature film and the actress eventually departed the project. That seemed to be the death of “Rub & Tug.” Well, not so fast…
READ MORE: ‘Rub & Tug’ Reportedly Not Moving Forward Due To Scarlett Johansson Departure
According to Deadline, “Rub & Tug” is getting new life on the small screen, with New Regency developing the story of Tex Gill as a TV series. The series focuses on the life of Dante “Tex” Gill, a trans man who became one of the most infamous gangsters in Pittsburgh during the 1970s due to his ring of illicit massage parlors and anabolic steroids that helped the Steelers win Super Bowls during that decade. And unlike the film version that was aborted, the new TV series will be written by a trans writer, the Emmy-nominated Our Lady J, and will star a trans man in the lead role.
“Tex’s life story is like no other, and the rich landscape of this unexplored moment in time has truly captured my imagination,” Our Lady J said. “I couldn’t be more excited about the opportunity to write a gangster drama based on such a fascinating and diverse web of queer characters.”
The writer continued, “The show is about the promise of reinvention, and the peril of losing oneself in the process. Tex Gill was out and proud in an era – the late 1970s – when living authentically came with the price of social ostracization, leaving him vulnerable to a life of crime and lawlessness. Having grown up in Pennsylvania myself, I’m also excited to delve deep into Pittsburgh’s underbelly as it unspools the story of Tex’s remarkable life – it’s also the story of a city’s struggle for rebirth and a proud community’s efforts to make its voice heard.”
Adding fuel to the controversy from two years ago is the fact that Rupert Sanders was also aboard the film and would reunite with Johansson after working together on “Ghost in the Shell,” a film that found itself embroiled in outrage due to the white-washing claims from fans that were upset with all the white actors in roles written for Asian people. The “Rub & Tug” situation had far-reaching effects, as many other actors and filmmakers commented on the situation. There were quite a few upset with Johansson’s initial defense of being in the film, but there were others, such as Andy Serkis and Glenn Close who didn’t see a problem with the casting at the time.
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Clearly, the story of Tex Gill was too good to pass up and it appears that New Regency is learning the lessons from two years ago with the new series. While it’s unknown who will take over the lead role, the series’ writer, Our Lady J, is very well known in Hollywood. The writer-producer has been Emmy-nominated for her work on the FX series “Pose,” and she has received numerous accolades working on Amazon’s “Transparent.”
There’s no timeline for a release of “Rub & Tug,” but we’ll definitely keep an eye out for news as it’s announced.