Abigail Thorn is finest recognized for creating PhilosophyTube, a YouTube channel with practically 2 million subscribers. (Getty)
Actress Abigail Thorn stars within the new Star Wars Cinematic Universe (SWCU) present The Acolyte, which drops on Disney+ this week.
Thorn performs ensign Eurus in The Acolyte, which is ready on the finish of the Excessive Republic period – roughly 100 years earlier than the occasions of Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace.
In keeping with Deadline, the brand new present is a “mystery-thriller that may take viewers right into a galaxy of shadowy secrets and techniques and rising dark-side powers… [when] a former padawan reunites together with her Jedi grasp to analyze a collection of crimes, however the forces they confront are extra sinister than they ever anticipated.”
Thorn will likely be showing alongside Lee Jung-jae of Squid Recreation fame, Amandla Stenberg (The Starvation Video games), and Carrie-Anne Moss, who featured in The Matrix franchise.
Not a lot is thought about Thorn’s character or how she suits into the broader narrative of the present, however as she is often known as a prolific YouTuber and a trans trailblazer, we thought it could be time to revisit what we find out about her.
Who’s Abigail Thorn?
Thorn is a British YouTuber, actress and playwright, best-known for producing and starring in PhilosophyTube.
She began her channel in 2013 to supply free philosophy classes for individuals after the rise in college tuition charges in England. It now has 1.5 million subscribers.
Thorn beforehand stated {that a} philosophy instructor in school inspired her to take the category for her A-Ranges after she wanted to review a 3rd topic (her different two have been biology and chemistry).
“Greater than anybody else, [the teacher] was chargeable for beginning me down the philosophy path. I found that not solely did I like philosophy however I had a knack for it too,” she advised What Is It Like To Be A Thinker.
Thorn later branched out into appearing and started auditioning for TV and movie roles, touchdown a component in BBC’s Ladhood and a TV remake of the 1966 movie Django.
She additionally voiced Nocturne, a secondary character within the online game Baldur’s Gate 3, and wrote and starred in a play known as The Prince, staged at London’s Southwark Playhouse, wherein Shakespearean characters turned self-aware and tried to flee being a part of the bard’s tragedies.
Following the discharge of The Acolyte, Thorn is ready to star in Dracula’s Ex-Girlfiend, a brief movie she wrote a couple of dinner attended by two of the vampire’s former companions.
When did Abigail Thorn come out as trans?
Thorn got here out publicly as trans in January 2021, posting a video, Coming Out As Trans – A Little Public Assertion, on her YouTube channel and social media.
Not solely did she focus on her personal transition and gender id, however Thorn additionally explored points akin to entry to trans healthcare, poor media illustration and an absence of transgender politicians.
“Trans individuals, particularly trans individuals of color, are hit hardest by unemployment, homelessness and home, sexual and police violence, however the dialog at all times focuses on rich white cis ladies tweeting about bogs,” she stated.
She had come out to household and buddies “ages in the past” however now wished to inform her subscribers, she added.
Just a few months later, Thorn once more lamented the dearth of entry to healthcare and civil rights for trans individuals within the UK. On Twitter (now often known as X), she stated she was “torn” over whether or not she ought to keep within the UK or transfer to New York.
“I do love my nation. It’s stunning, the persons are fascinating and it’s my dwelling but when I can’t get correct healthcare or equal rights then, England, it feels such as you don’t love me again.
“The US isn’t good and in lots of areas is worse, however there are pockets of it the place I might stay extra freely than in Britain, that’s how dangerous issues are right here. I need to keep however one thing has to vary.”
The place are you able to watch The Acolyte?
The Acolyte drops on Disney+ on Tuesday (4 June) within the US and at 2am BST on Wednesday (5 June) within the UK with a two-episode premiere, adopted by weekly releases.
There are numerous different reveals and movies throughout the SWCU nevertheless it isn’t essential to have watched all of them earlier than tuning in to The Acolyte, though individuals may need to do some preliminary analysis on the Star Wars saga.