Wilson Cruz has stepped into the roles of Ricky on the landmark drama My So-Called Life, the tragically destined Angel Melendez in Party Monster, and his current role of Dr. Hugh Culber in Star Trek: Discovery, among other roles. Throughout all of the roles, the thread weaved through all of the roles is honesty and a determination by Cruz to give underrepresented people their moment of true representation. Recently, Cruz stepped into another role as leather daddy for the day in front of the lens of noted photographer Mike Ruiz for the cover of PhotoBook Magazine, opening up about where he finds inspiration and his current role on the Star Trek franchise.
In front of Ruiz’s lens, Cruz looks at ease in full daddy couture (courtesy of ALL SAINTS, John Varvatos, Leather Man, & Florsheim Shoes) and speaks at length about how he continues to have immense pride in the role of Ricky on My So-Called Life (“I set out to build an army of queer young people who know their worth, and I think I can safely say I’ve been able to do that.”) He also discussed the challenges of being both a Latinx and a openly gay actor (“It’s been a challenge to convince content creators that the characters they envisioned don’t necessarily have to be a white, straight cisgendered men”).
Cruz also touched on his role as Hugh Culber in Star Trek: Discovery (where he stars alongside former Rent co-star Anthony Rapp) and what we may see this season; “Hugh has such a sense of duty to everyone in his life, from his patients to his family, and he finds so much fulfillment and happiness in showing up for all of them in meaningful ways. That said, there is a cost to taking it all on and this season, we get a very real sense of that.”
For Wilson Cruz’s full article in PhotoBook Magazine, click here
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