Hunter Schafer emerges at Independent Spirit Awards 2025 after blasting Trump for issuing her a male passport
Hunter Schafer made a striking return to the spotlight at the 2025 Independent Spirit Awards in Santa Monica on Saturday, her first appearance since calling out President Trump over her passport listing her as ‘male’ due to his executive order.
The Euphoria star, 26, turned heads at the event’s 40th anniversary celebration, which champions gender-neutral acting categories—setting it apart from the Oscars, Emmys, and Golden Globes.
Draped in a flowing yellow floral sundress, Hunter exuded effortless elegance as she posed for photographers, her golden locks cascading freely over her shoulders.
She completed the look with chic gray and pink striped heels, adding a touch of playful sophistication.
Surrounded by a glittering lineup of A-listers, including Demi Moore, Amy Adams, Sebastian Stan, and Mikey Madison, Hunter’s appearance came just hours after she took to social media in an emotional eight-minute video.
In it, she revealed her frustration upon discovering that her newly issued passport misgenders her, despite her explicitly selecting ‘female’ during the application process.
Hunter Schafer made a striking return to the spotlight at the 2025 Independent Spirit Awards in Santa Monica on Saturday, her first appearance since calling out President Trump over her passport listing her as ‘male’ due to his executive order
The Euphoria star, 26, turned heads at the event’s 40th anniversary celebration , which champions gender-neutral acting categories—setting it apart from the Oscars, Emmys , and Golden Globes
Beginning her video, Hunter explained that she hasn’t had any issues with her gender marker since she had it changed a decade ago.
‘I want to acknowledge my privilege, not only as a celebrity transwoman who is white and thin and can adhere to contemporary beauty standards and I can participate in all of the that, and I pass, and it still happened,’ she said.
‘I never had my birth certificate changed, so this has led me to believe that I think the agencies who are interested in passports are now required to cross reference birth certificates.
‘I don’t know exactly what, or what changed in far of the processing goes.
‘This is the first time this has happened to me since I changed my gender marker. We’re coming up on a decade now or something.’
Hunter said that fundamentally she does not care about her sex being changed on her passport because she is and always will be a transgender woman.
‘I also want to say, I don’t give a f**k that they put a M on my passport,’ she continued.
‘It doesn’t change really anything about me or my transness, however it does make life a little harder.
The Euphoria star, 26, turned heads at the event’s 40th anniversary celebration , which champions gender-neutral acting categories—setting it apart from the Oscars, Emmys , and Golden Globes
Natasha Lyonne, Hunter Schafer, Nava Mau made a gorgeous trio
Alana Haim, left, and Hunter presented
Later in the evening, fate aligned when Hunter took the stage alongside singer Alana Haim to present the award for Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series—only for Nava to take home the honor
The emotional win made for a powerful full-circle moment, as Hunter was among the first to congratulate her
The duo enjoyed the warm weather of Santa Monica
Concluding her video, Hunter added: ‘Trans people are beautiful.’
‘We are never going to stop existing, I am never going to stop being trans, a letter on a passport can’t change that.’
At the 2025 Independent Spirit Awards, Hunter shared a heartfelt moment with fellow trans actress Nava Mau, marking a milestone for both stars.
The two, both nominees, crossed paths on the red carpet at the Santa Monica Pier on Saturday afternoon, celebrating their recognition in separate categories—Hunter for Best Lead Performance in Cuckoo and Nava for Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series for Baby Reindeer.
Later in the evening, fate aligned when Hunter took the stage alongside singer Alana Haim to present the award for Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series—only for Nava to take home the honor.
The emotional win made for a powerful full-circle moment, as Hunter was among the first to congratulate her.
Independent Spirit Awards 2025 winners
MOVIES
Best Lead Performance
Amy Adams – Nightbitch
Ryan Destiny – The Fire Inside
Colman Domingo – Sing Sing
Keith Kupferer – Ghostlight
Mikey Madison – Anora — WINNER
Demi Moore – The Substance
Hunter Schafer – Cuckoo
Justice Smith – I Saw The Tv Glow
June Squibb – Thelma
Sebastian Stan – The Apprentice
Demi Moore had a shock loss when Mikey Madison won best actress for Anora
Best Supporting Performance
Yura Borisov – Anora
Joan Chen – Dìdi
Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain — WINNER
Danielle Deadwyler – The Piano Lesson
Carol Kane – Between The Temples
Karren Karagulian – Anora
Kani Kusruti – Girls Will Be Girls
Jack Haven – I Saw The Tv Glow
Clarence ‘Divine Eye’ Maclin – Sing Sing
Adam Pearson – A Different Man
Kieran Culkin won for his role in the dark comedy A Real Pain
Best Breakthrough Performance
Isaac Krasner – Big Boys
Katy O’brian – Love Lies Bleeding
Mason Alexander Park – National Anthem
René Pérez Joglar – In The Summers
Maisy Stella – My Old Ass — WINNER
Maisy Stella won Best Breakthrough Performance in a feature for her role in the coming-of-age dramedy My Old Ass
Best Feature
Anora – Sean Baker, Alex Coco, Samantha Quan — WINNER
I Saw The Tv Glow – Ali Herting, Luca Intili, Dave Mccary, Emma Stone, Sarah Winshall
Nickel Boys – Joslyn Barnes, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, David Levine
Sing Sing – Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Monique Walton
The Substance – Tim Bevan, Coralie Fargeat, Eric Fellner
Anora, which follows a young sex worker from Brooklyn, won for Best Feature
Best Documentary
Gaucho Gaucho
Hummingbirds
No Other Land — WINNER
Patrice: The Movie
Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat
Best Director
Ali Abbasi – The Apprentice
Sean Baker – Anora — WINNER
Brady Corbet – The Brutalist
Alonso Ruizpalacios – La Cocina
Jane Schoenbrun – I Saw The TV Glow
Sean Baker won best director for his film Anora
Best Screenplay
Scott Beck, Bryan Woods – Heretic
Jesse Eisenberg – A Real Pain — WINNER
Megan Park – My Old Ass
Aaron Schimberg – A Different Man
Jane Schoenbrun – I Saw The Tv Glow
Actor and writer Jesse Eisenberg won Best Screenplay for A Real Pain
Best First Feature
Dìdi — WINNER
In the Summers
Janet Planet
The Piano Lesson
Problemista
Best International Film
All We Imagine as Light
Black Dog
Flow — WINNER
Green Border
Hard Truths
John Cassavetes Award
Big Boys
Ghostlight
Girls Will Be Girls — WINNER
Jazzy
The People’s Joker
Best Cinematography
Đinh Duy Hưng – Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell
Jomo Fray – Nickel Boys — WINNER
Maria von Hausswolff – Janet Planet
Juan Pablo Ramírez – La Cocina
Rina Yang – The Fire Inside
Best Editing
Laura Colwell and Vanara Taing – Jazzy
Olivier Bugge Coutté and Olivia Neergaard-Holm – The Apprentice
Anne McCabe – Nightbitch
Hansjörg Weißbrich – September 5 — WINNER
Arielle Zakowski – Dìdi
Someone to Watch Award
Nicholas Colia – Griffin in Summer
Sarah Friedland – Familiar Touch — WINNER
Phan Thien An – Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell
Truer than Fiction Award
Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie – Sugarcane
Carla Gutiérrez – Frida
Rachel Elizabeth Seed – A Photographic Memory — WINNER
Producers Award
Alex Coco – Anora
Sarah Winshall – I Saw The TV Glow — WINNER
Zoë Worth – Thelma
Robert Altman Award
His Three Daughters — WINNER
TELEVISION
Best Lead Performance In A New Scripted Series
Brian Jordan Alvarez – English Teacher
Richard Gadd – Baby Reindeer — WINNER
Lily Gladstone – Under The Bridge
Kathryn Hahn – Agatha All Along
Cristin Milioti – The Penguin
Julianne Moore – Mary & George
Hiroyuki Sanada – Shōgun
Anna Sawai – Shōgun
Andrew Scott – Ripley
Julio Torres – Fantasmas
Baby Reindeer creator Richard Gadd won for his lead role in the hit Netflix series
Best Supporting Performance In A New Scripted Series
Tadanobu Asano – Shōgun
Enrico Colantoni – English Teacher
Betty Gilpin – Three Women
Chloe Guidry – Under The Bridge
Moeka Hoshi – Shōgun
Stephanie Koenig – English Teacher
Patti Lupone – Agatha All Along
Nava Mau – Baby Reindeer — WINNER
Ruth Negga – Presumed Innocent
Brian Tee – Expats
Ruth Negga was nominated for her role in the Apple TV + series Presumed Innocent, but lost to Bay Reindeer’s Nava Mau
Best Breakthrough Performance In A New Scripted Series
Jessica Gunning – Baby Reindeer — WINNER
Diarra Kilpatrick – Diarra From Detroit
Joe Locke – Agatha All Along
Megan Stott – Penelope
Hoa Xuande – The Sympathizer
Jessica Gunning won Best Breakthrough Performance in a New Scripted Series for her portrayal of a stalker in Netflix series Baby Reindeer
Best New Scripted Series
Baby Reindeer – Creator/Exec Producer: Richard Gadd. Exec Producers: Wim De Greef, Petra Fried, Matt Jarvis, Ed Macdonald
Diarra From Detroit – Creator/Exec Producer: Diarra Kilpatrick. Exec Producers: Kenya Barris, Miles Orion Feldsott, Darren Goldberg. Co-Exec Producers: Ester Lou, Mark Ganek
English Teacher – Creators/Exec Producer: Brian Jordan Alvarez. Exec Producers: Paul Simms, Jonathan Krisel, Dave King. Co-Exec Producers: Kathryn Dean, Jake Bender, Zach Dunn
Fantasmas – Creator/Exec Producer: Julio Torres. Exec Producers: Emma Stone, Dave Mccary, Olivia Gerke, Alex Bach, Daniel Powell. Co-Exec Producer: Ali Herting
Shōgun – Creators/Exec Producers: Rachel Kondo, Justin Marks. Exec Producers: Edward L. Mcdonnell, Michael De Luca, Michaela Clavell. Co-Exec Producers: Shannon Goss, Andrew Macdonald, Allon Reich, Jamie Vega Wheeler — WINNER
Shōgun won for Best New Scripted Series
Best Ensemble Cast in a New Scripted Series
How To Die Alone — WINNER
Best New Non-Scripted or Documentary Series
Erased: WW2’s Heroes of Color
Hollywood Black — WINNER
Photographer
Ren Faire
Social Studies
