When Orange Is the New Black first dropped on Netflix, it felt like everyone was talking about one specific scene. It wasn't the prison food or the drama between Piper and Alex. It was the flashback to Sophia Burset’s life before she transitioned. People saw a face that looked hauntingly like the actress we’d grown to love, yet unmistakably different.
Seeing Laverne Cox as man—or rather, seeing the character Marcus—sparked a million Google searches. Was it CGI? Did she de-transition for a day? Honestly, the truth is way more interesting than digital effects.
That Wasn't a Digital Trick
A lot of fans assumed the showrunners used some high-tech "de-aging" software or heavy-duty contouring to make Laverne look like a man. It makes sense why you'd think that. Hollywood does it all the time now. But the reality is much more human.
The person you saw playing Marcus was actually M Lamar, Laverne’s identical twin brother.
The casting wasn't just a gimmick. Initially, the producers did try to make Laverne look more masculine for the role. They brought in makeup artists and tried to "butch her up." But it didn't work. Jodie Foster, who was directing that specific episode ("Lesbian Request Denied"), reportedly didn't think Laverne looked masculine enough to pull off the pre-transition version of the character.
Think about that for a second. In a world where trans women are often unfairly told they look "too masculine," a legendary director told Laverne Cox she was too feminine to play a man. That’s kinda beautiful, in a weird way.
Who is M Lamar?
He’s not just "Laverne’s brother." M Lamar is a massive talent in his own right, though he lives in a very different world than the Hollywood red carpets. He’s a:
- Composer
- Operatic countertenor
- Multimedia artist
He’s deeply into "Negrogothic" art. Basically, he explores the intersection of horror, romance, and the Black experience. He actually didn't even want to be an actor. He took the OITNB gig mostly to pay his bills, which is probably the most relatable thing ever.
Growing Up in Mobile
Laverne’s actual history with masculinity is pretty heavy. Born in 1972 in Mobile, Alabama, she was raised by a single mom and a grandmother. Back then, "transgender" wasn't a word people were using in the pews of an AME Zion church.
She was bullied. Heavily.
She’s told stories about being chased by kids with drumsticks and being yelled at by teachers. In third grade, a teacher famously told her mother, "Your son is going to end up in New Orleans wearing a dress." At the time, that was meant as a threat or a tragedy. For Laverne, it was just a confusing glimpse into a future she didn't know how to reach yet.
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She tried to "fix" it. Most people don't know that she was a straight-A student and an overachiever specifically to overcompensate for the shame she felt. She was even the vice president of her student council.
The Pushback Against Testosterone
There’s a heartbreaking detail in her biography that people rarely mention. When she was a kid, a therapist actually suggested she get testosterone injections to make her "more of a man."
Fortunately, her mother—who struggled with the transition for years—had a gut feeling that injecting a child with hormones wasn't right. She pulled Laverne out of therapy. That decision likely saved Laverne from a lot of physical and mental trauma, even if things remained difficult at home for a long time.
Transitioning in the Nightclubs
By the time Laverne got to New York City to attend Marymount Manhattan College, the "man" the world saw was starting to fade. She started out as gender-nonconforming. She’d wear box braids, vintage coats, and platform shoes.
The New York City nightclub scene in the 90s was her classroom. It was the first place where people looked at her and didn't see someone failing at being a man. They saw someone succeeding at being themselves.
She didn't just wake up one day as the Emmy-nominated icon we see today. She worked as a waitress for years. She paid for her medical transition out of her own pocket, bit by bit. It took seven years after she started hormone replacement therapy before she could even afford her first surgery.
Why the Flashback Matters
When we talk about Laverne Cox as man, we aren't just talking about a casting choice. We’re talking about the "Transgender Tipping Point." Before Orange Is the New Black, trans characters were usually played by cisgender men in wigs (think Dallas Buyers Club or The Crying Game). Having a trans woman play a trans woman was rare. Having her twin brother play her pre-transition self was revolutionary.
It allowed the audience to see the transition as a journey of the soul, not just a change in wardrobe. It respected the reality of Laverne’s body while still telling a complete story.
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Actionable Insights for Fans and Allies
If you're looking to understand this history better, don't just stop at the Netflix episodes.
- Watch "Disclosure": It’s a documentary on Netflix executive-produced by Laverne. It explains exactly why the way we portray trans people on screen (including those "before and after" tropes) matters so much.
- Check out M Lamar’s music: If you want to see the "other side" of the twin dynamic, his work is haunting and brilliant. It's not Hollywood; it’s art.
- Use the right terminology: Remember that "man" is a label assigned to her at birth, but it’s not who she was. When discussing her past, it's usually best to refer to it as her "assigned male at birth" (AMAB) history or her "pre-transition" life.
Laverne Cox didn't just "become" a woman. She stopped pretending to be the man the world told her she had to be. Whether it’s her brother on screen or her own memories of Alabama, those "man" years weren't a separate person—they were just the difficult first chapters of a much better story.