Dante “Tex” Gill, a transgender massage parlor owner whose portrayal by Scarlett Johansson in the upcoming film “Rub & Tug” has prompted a strong backlash, “would be laughing his ass off” at the debate, says Gill’s cousin, Barry Paris.
“That wouldn’t be as important as how he wanted the world to see him,” Paris, a longtime film critic for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, told TheWrap on Thursday.
Paris said he didn’t know for certain how Gill, who died in 2003 at the age of 72, would have reacted to Johansson or any actress playing him on film.
“I’d say it’s a toss-up, but I think it’s slightly more likely he would have liked to be played by a man because he identified as a man,” Paris told TheWrap.