The groundbreaking drama Pose is to come to an end after its third series, it has been announced.
Set in the New York ballroom scene in the late 1980s and early 90s, Pose made history by assembling the largest number of trans actors ever cast on a scripted series.
It also features a number of prominent transgender creatives behind the scenes, including writer and director Janet Mock and Our Lady J.
On Friday afternoon, it was announced that the upcoming third series – which will begin airing in the US in May – will be the last.
Executive producer Steven Canals said in a statement: “Write the TV show you want to watch. That’s what I was told in 2014 when completing my MFA in screenwriting. At the time we weren’t seeing very many Black and Latino characters – that happened to also be LGBTQ+ – populating screens.
“And so I wrote the first draft of a pilot the ‘younger me’ deserved. Pose was conceived as a love letter to the underground NY ballroom community, to my beloved New York, to my queer and trans family, to myself.
“I, along with my incredible collaborators, never intended on changing the TV landscape. I simply wanted to tell an honest story about family, resilience and love. How fortunate am I to have done that for three seasons.
“I’m filled with gratitude to our intrepid writers, cast, crew and producers who worked tirelessly to make Pose come to life, humbled by our loyal audience, thankful to the ballroom community who trusted us to tell their story, overwhelmed by the critics who warmly embraced us and forever indebted to Ryan Murphy, FX and 20th Television for changing my life.”
Details about the third series are yet to be confirmed, but actor Jeremy Pope – last seen in Ryan Murphy’s Netflix show Hollywood – is thought to be joining the cast as a new love interest for the Evangelista house mother Blanca.
Since its debut, Pose has been nominated for three Golden Globes and multiple Emmys, including an Emmy win for Billy Porter, who portrays ballroom emcee Praytell.
His win was noteworthy as he became the first openly gay, Black winner in the Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama category.