‘Sex Education’ is adding a non-binary character to its cast for season 3

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Netflix

• Netflix’s hit series “Sex Education” is adding a non-binary character to its cast for Season 3. 
• Dua Saleh, a non-binary artist who uses they/them pronouns, will star as new student “Cal.” 
• According to Netflix, Cal is a new student at Moordale Secondary who “instantly clashes” with the new headmistress. 
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“Sex Education,” the hit Netflix show known for pushing boundaries in the sphere of teen romance, has announced the addition of its first non-binary character for season 3.

Cal, a new student at Moordale Secondary who “instantly clashes” with the school’s new headmistress, will be played by 24-year-old Sudanese-American recording artist, Dua Saleh, who uses they/them pronouns.

“Girls” actress Jemima Kirke will play the new headmistress, Hope, and “Harry Potter” actor Jason Isaacs will play the older brother of former headmaster Michael Groff. 

While this is Saleh’s television debut, this isn’t their first time performing. 

Their first EP, “Nūr,” released in 2019, was lauded by music critics. This year, their song “Body Cast” was released to raise money for Minneapolis-based social justice organization, Women for Political Change. 

The (belated) rise of non-binary roles on-screen

“Non-binary” is an umbrella term for people who don’t identify as men or women, and can identify anywhere along or outside of the gender binary. Some non-binary people are also transgender, but not all.

Genders beyond “man” and “woman” have existed in cultures all over the world for centuries, like Two Spirit people in Native American Nations or muxe of Zapotec tradition, and more people are openly identifying as non-binary in the US. 

However, non-binary people remain underrepresented in film and television, with roles few and far between. 

Shows like “Sex Education,” “Star Trek: Discovery,” and “Billions” are breaking the mold by including their first non-binary characters in recent years.  

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