In a moment that is seeing unprecedented exposure on television for the transgender community, CBS's Big Brother will soon join the conversation when the show welcomes its first transgender houseguest.
The casting of 25-year-old transgender woman Audrey Middleton, a digital media consultant from Villa Rica, Georgia, was announced Tuesday, along with the rest of the houseguests.
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At the time of the initial casting announcement -- which included the names, ages, hometowns and occupations of the houseguests -- CBS made no mention of the historic casting.
I'm so glad CBS let us meet Audrey before we learned she was transgender. We got to know her as a person and not a storyline. #BB17— #BB17 (@JonsShoulder) June 16, 2015
A CBS spokesperson later released a statement, saying: "Audrey Middleton is a Big Brother super fan who applied online, like many other hopeful Houseguests, and was open about her transition in the application process. It is customary for BIG BROTHER Houseguests to share personal news inside the house, and Audrey plans to discuss her story with the houseguests in her own words during the premiere episode on Wednesday, June 24th."
Meet Southern girl superfan Audrey! #BB17 http://t.co/QyWPSFnSmD pic.twitter.com/O7DcqoCbCJ— Big Brother on CBS! (@CBSBigBrother) June 16, 2015
Middleton's casting comes at a time when the transgender community is seeing more representation than ever on television, with Amazon's Transparent, Netflix's Orange Is the New Black, and Caitlyn Jenner's groundbreaking Diane Sawyer interview among the most credited catalysts for increased awareness.
Big Brother airs its two-night season premiere June 24 and June 25.
Here are the bios for all the houseguests competing for $500,000:
Jace Agolli, 23
Hometown: Dunwoody, Georgia
Current City: Venice Beach, California
Occupation: Personal Trainer
Becky Burgess, 26
Hometown: Denver, Colorado
Current City: Denver, Colorado
Occupation: Retail Manager
Clay Honeycutt, 23
Hometown: Dickinson, Texas
Current City: College Station, Texas
Occupation: Graduate Student (Texas A&M)
James Huling, 31
Hometown: Sumter, South Carolina
Current City: Wichita Falls, Texas
Occupation: Retail Associate
Meg Maley, 25
Hometown: Collingswood, New Jersey
Current City: New York, New York
Occupation: Server
Austin Matelson, 30
Hometown: Woodland Hills, California
Current City: Woodland Hills, California
Occupation: Professional Wrestler
John McGuire, 27
Hometown: Scranton, Pennsylvania
Current City: Jefferson Township, Pennsylvania
Occupation: Dentist
Audrey Middleton, 25
Hometown: Villa Rica, Georgia
Current City: Villa Rica, Georgia
Occupation: Digital Media Consultant
Steve Moses, 22
Hometown: Gouverneur, New York
Current City: Gouverneur, New York
Occupation: College Student
Liz Nolan, 23
Hometown: Miami
Current City: Miami
Occupation: Marketing Coordinator
Shelli Poole, 33
Hometown: Marietta, Georgia
Current City: Atlanta
Occupation: Interior Designer
Da’Vonne Rogers, 27
Hometown: Inglewood, California
Current City: Los Angeles
Occupation: Poker Dealer
Vanessa Rousso, 32
Hometown: Las Vegas
Current City: Las Vegas
Occupation: Professional Poker Player
Jason Roy, 25
Hometown: Fall River, Massachusetts
Current City: Swansea, Massachusetts
Occupation: Supermarket Cashier