Ahead of joining the Marvel community with her upcoming role in “Agatha All Along,” Sasheer Zamata opened up about joining the LGBTQ+ community. In a recent interview, the former “SNL” star reflected on her journey with her sexuality.
“I’m out in my life and I do keep my personal life kind of private, but I also don’t necessarily want my identity to be private,” Zamata told Them magazine. “I guess I’m one of those late-in-life lesbians. I just feel very comfortable and confident in my life.”
For Zamata, whose portfolio includes portraying lesbian characters in productions like “Woke,” “Home Economics,” “Tuca & Bertie,” and “The Last O.G.,” her personal discovery felt a bit ironic.
“I kept getting cast as queer women,” she said, joking about Hollywood making her gay. “And this is before I myself was figuring out my identity. I was like, ‘Whoa, what are these casting directors seeing that I’m not seeing?’”
Now at 38 years old, the actress and comedian is committed to embracing every part of herself, which she says inspired her decision to publicly identify as lesbian. According to Zamata, her recent awakening stemmed from her decision to get off birth control for the first time in nearly 22 years. Reportedly changing everything, she explains how her friends noticed something different about her.
“I cut all my hair off. And I was always attracted to women, but I think [that] really boosted it,” she explained. “No one asks straight people about their journey of discovery, but I guess it felt like if I didn’t say anything, I’d be ignoring a part of me, and that doesn’t feel very good. But yeah, I’ve definitely had thoughts of, not necessarily keeping it a secret, but [that] there’s no need to say anything about it.”
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Despite publicly revealing her sexuality, Zamata hopes to maintain her privacy and boundaries around her personal life.
“I don’t want to be the representative of anything,” she added. “I just got here. But I do want to be a part of the community.”
Now starring in the “WandaVision” spinoff, Zamata says it’s “nice to be able to portray a character who has been an outcast for a lot of her life” in “a show that’s exploring so many cool female and queer themes.”
“I think what this show is going to do is also open up the door to a whole new fanbase of people who maybe didn’t see themselves before in the Marvel Universe,” she said. “I hope people watch it and can see a little bit of themselves in it.”
The first two episodes of the “WandaVision” spinoff “Agatha All Along” are scheduled to premiere on Sept. 18 on Disney+.
