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Leo Sheng
My name is Leo. I’m currently a working actor in Los Angeles, CA (something I never thought I’d say!). I grew up in Michigan, where I also eventually attended college (Go Blue, or whatever).
My journey to acting has, so far, largely been one of happenstance. I was semi-merrily going about my business when I was messaged on social media to read for a role; a casting agency searching for trans actors to portray a trans character. I didn’t realize then: that was beginning of very, very wild ride.
I was adopted from Hunan, China, and raised by two moms who were social workers. I fought the social work bug for a long time. I wanted to be a doctor, then a teacher, then an EMT, then a screenwriter. But, eventually, I landed on social worker. I was scheduled to begin a two-year master’s program at the University of Michigan’s School Social Work when I booked my first acting job in 2017: a lead role in the film Adam.
Fastforward to 2022, and I’m currently preparing to enter my third year as a series regular on Showtime’s The L Word: Generation Q. I’ve also worked with Vice on a mini-docuseries, and I was fortunate to have a role on the 2021 feature, Matrix Resurrections (holy crap!). For anyone wondering, I still haven’t graduated with my master’s degree.
Although I’m currently focused on acting, I remain close to my roots of facilitation and community building. My identities as a Chinese American queer trans man heavily inform my work on screen, and my work behind the scenes