Yahoo Finance Billy Porter Wants Pose Costar Mj Rodriguez to Win at 2021 Emmy Awards: 'I'm So Proud of Her'
Billy Porter is rooting for his former Pose costar Michaela Jaé "Mj" Rodriguez to win big at the 73rd annual Emmy Awards.
During the PEOPLE and Entertainment Weekly Red Carpet Live for Sunday's Emmy Awards, Porter showed his support for Rodriguez. Rodriguez's nomination is historic, making the 30-year-old the first transgender performer to receive a lead actress nod.
"That's the thing that I want to happen — is for Mj Rodriguez, Michaela Jaé, as she is called, to take that home," Porter, 51, said. "You know, she has carried the heart and soul of Pose, like I say, on her back like Jesus on the road to Damascus, for three seasons."
"She's the heart and soul. She's the mother of all mothers. I'm so proud of her," he continued. "I've known her since she was 18 years old, and to see the growth and to see the evolution has been extraordinary."
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Porter, who is up for outstanding lead actor in a drama series, also talked about the impact Pose had in its short three seasons on the air.
"It's been a transformative year. COVID was really great for me, just in terms of understanding that time to heal old traumas and tell a different story. I know people are disappointed that Pose is over, and it's time to tell a new story. And I'm excited for that," he said. "The fact that there's a community of people who very often feel invisible, and we have been able to make the invisible, visible ... I will forever be so proud of that."
Porter and Rodriguez starred on Pose as Pray Tell and Blanca Rodriguez-Evangelista, respectively, for three seasons. The series came to an end on FX in June.
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Pose has also been nominated for outstanding drama series alongside Lovecraft Country, The Boys, Bridgerton, The Crown, The Handmaid's Tale, The Mandalorian and This Is Us.
Rodriguez recently spoke about her own history-making nomination to PEOPLE.
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"I'm excited. I'm lifted. I'm thankful. I'm humbled and I'm grateful," she said. "I feel like this moment in time has never ever happened for a girl like myself and I feel like it's time and it's time to keep showing up. It doesn't stop here."
The 73rd Emmy Awards, hosted by Cedric the Entertainer, are airing live on CBS and Paramount+.
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