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Laverne Cox "Always Dreamed" About Getting an Emmy Nomination: "But I Honestly Can't Believe It!"

Orange Is the New Black star is first openly trans person up for an Emmy

By Marc Malkin Jul 10, 2014 5:58 PMTags
Laverne Cox, Orange is the New BlackNetflix

Congratulations, Laverne Cox!

Not only was she nominated for an Emmy this morning for her work on Orange Is the New Black, but she made history by becoming the first openly transgender person to be up for an honor on the television industry's biggest night of the year.

I just spoke to Cox as she was on her way to the set of the hit Netflix series. Here's what she had to say…

"I absolutely dreamed about this," she said. "I dreamed big and wild my whole life. And getting an Emmy nomination is one of the dreams. But I honestly can't believe it. It's really happening."

Cox added, "I'm a black trans woman from Mobile, Alabama with a working class background raised by a single mother and I'm nominated for an Emmy! Wow!"

Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images

Cox, of course, will continue her work for the transgender community. "I love being an actor and I love doing what I do, but I also want to make a difference in the world," she said. "It's important to remember that just because this one trans woman is having a lovely career high, it's still a state of emergency for trans people all over the country. There were four trans women murdered in the month of June…I am enjoying this, but there's still work to be done for our community."

She hopes to bring her mom to the big night. "I don't know how many plus-ones I get, but I want to bring her and my agent and so many more people," she said.

As for what she'll wear, Cox laughed, "I don't know. This only happened a couple of hours ago! Hopefully designers will want to dress me. I'm hoping to get my body really tight."

See you at the Emmys, Laverne!

Hosted by Seth Meyers, the 66th Primetime Emmy Awards will be broadcast live from the Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE on NBC on Aug. 25 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.