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 Series creator Jill Soloway told reporters on Saturday that
turning to song and dance allowed the show to return with a
fresh take and an upbeat ending despite the heavy subject matter
and on-set turmoil. The finale will debut on Amazon Prime Video
on Sept. 27.
"Making it into a musical in some ways just rescued it from
being overly serious," Soloway said at a Television Critics
Association event. "We didn't want to tell a story of Maura's
death that was a complete mourning, that was a sad farewell."
The format also offered the cast "our chance to heal together"
after Tambor's exit, Soloway said.
"We had to find our way back to joy," Soloway said, "and the
musical allowed us to do that."
"Transparent" broke barriers when it debuted in 2014 with its
use of transgender actors and portrayal of the transgender
community. Tambor played the lead role of Maura Pfefferman, a
divorced father who transitions to a woman late in life, through
four seasons.
The actor, who won two Emmys and a Golden Globe for the role,
was cut from the show in February 2018 after two people who
worked on the series accused him of sexual harassment. Tambor
has called the allegations false.
"Transparent" stars Judith Light as Shelly Pfefferman, the
ex-wife of Maura and the mother to three children played by Jay
Duplass, Amy Landecker and Gaby Hoffman.
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The series was based on Soloway's own family, the creator has
said. Soloway's sister, Faith Soloway, wrote the music for the
final episode, which she said was pulled from songs she had been
writing about the family her entire life.
Shakina Nayfack, a newcomer to the cast, said the stars and
producers wanted a worthy farewell to honor its legacy.
"There's so much magic and opportunity that's been created by
this show," Nayfack said. "If we were to let it go down because
of an unfortunate event, we'd be taking that away from
everybody, especially the trans folk who need this
representation, who need these jobs."
"So the commitment to keep going and push through the fire and
create something truly celebratory was shared, and was there
from the beginning," Nayfack added.
(Reporting by Lisa Richwine; Editing by Richard Chang)
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