'Pose' Is Now on Netflix, So You Can Binge the FX Series Before Season 2

Ryan Murphy is King Midas when it comes to creating hit television shows, and he’s consistently helped in spreading diversity throughout the industry by creating storylines and roles for the LGBTQIA+ individuals. 

Most recently, his show Pose focuses on the story of the marginalized trans community in 1980’s New York City. 

Pose dives deep into the era of “ball culture,” which involved youths who were forced out of their homes because they would not conform to “normative” gender or sexual orientation standards. These people then formed “houses” where they combined fashion and dance, and  then competed against one another at balls. 

While the individual characters in the series may be fictional, the backstory is very much positioned in the subculture of that era. And, believe us, it is worth exploring!    

As we mentioned above, the characters and plot points are fictionalized, but they are all set in a very real time period. Dealing with transphobic and homophobic individuals and their hate speech — and living at the height of the AIDS crisis —  Pose’s storylines are cemented in truth.  

The series is also based on the documentary Paris Is Burning, which took audiences inside the lives of drag queens and queer culture. The groundbreaking film is largely responsible for introducing hetero-normative audiences to the underground subculture. 

The FX series by Mr. Murphy is mainly inspired by this iconic documentary, both of which you can now watch on Netflix. #Blessed. 

If you haven’t seen the FX series, binge-watch the whole show on Netflix now before Season 2 airs. The second season will open right when Madonna’s infamous “Vogue” single drops, which sees ballroom scene make its way into mainstream pop culture. 

Also, the show will continue to explore the AIDS crisis in the early '90s and the the reactions from a group of activists. 

The show’s co-creator Steven Canals spoke about the show’s second season at PaleyFest, telling fans that they will take an inside look at the characters living with AIDS. 

"We’re also talking about access to medical care and what does that mean to be positive and be Black or be Latin and not have access?” he said. "To explore life and death in that way is exciting as a storyteller and also scary because you know the audience has expectations, and they fall in love with these characters.” 

Steven continued: "To explore life and death in that way is exciting as a storyteller and also scary because you know the audience has expectations, and they fall in love with these characters. We now get sort of reacquainted with these characters because the year-and-a-half has now passed. It’s fun to explore what has happened in the past two years, and how are they the person that they are presenting now?"

The key figures returning for Season 2 of Pose are: Damon (played by Ryan Jamaal Swain), Blanca (played by Mj Rodriguez), Pray Tell  (played by Billy Porter), Angel (played by Indya Moore), and Stan Bowes (played by Evan Peters). 

You will also see more of Season 1 guest stars, such as Kate Mara, James Van Der Beek, and Angelica Ross, just to name a few. 

Plus, one newcomer joining Season 2 is legendary Broadway star Patti LuPone.

"She loves the show and we wrote this part and she said, ‘Yes, I want to do it,’ so she’s coming to play with us in a couple weeks,” Ryan said. 

Catch the Season 2 premiere of Pose on June 11 at 10 p.m. ET on FX.