The mythologically inspired Netflix series Kaos is actually a comedy. However, there is one scene that made both a star and showrunner:in Charlie Covell cry.
The black-humored Netflix comedy Kaos about the mythological machinations of the gods and goddesses from the Greek pantheon has been online since last week. The format by Charlie Covell (The End of the Fing World) currently occupies second place in the streamer’s series charts.
The main attraction is Jeff Goldblum as an ageing Zeus in an existential crisis, but other mythological figures from Olympus have also been given a modern update. This includes Kaineus, played by actor Misia Butler, whose first day of filming ended with great emotion and even tears on set.
This is why Kaos star Misia Butler caused tears on the Netflix set with one of his first scenes
In Greek mythology, Kaineus was a girl who was raped by Poseidon and then turned into a boy. So it was probably obvious for the creatives behind the Netflix series to cast a trans actor in the role.
In episode 4, Kaineus shares parts of his backstory in a five-minute dialog scene with Eurydice aka Riddy (Aurora Perrineau). Butler talks about it in an interview with the Radio Times :
I think it was the first day of shooting when we did that scene, my audition scene, where me and another character are sitting on a bench, talking for a very long time, and I was so moved by it. Afterwards I saw that Charlie was totally moved too. And we just cried and hugged each other.
Showrunner:in Charlie Covell is non-binary himself and therefore also part of the trans community, which made the scene very personal for both people involved. Butler continued:
I then commented that if I had seen that scene as the child that I was, I would have felt incredibly seen, which would have strengthened my experience because I would have seen myself represented in such a powerful way.
For Misia Butler, Kaos is already the fourth Netflix production after Kiss Me First, The School for Good and Evil and Half Bad.
More LGBTQ representation in the Netflix series Kaos
There is no shortage of LGBTQ representation in Kaos either, as the deities seem to be largely above human heteronormativity. Dionysus (Nabhaan Rizwan), Hera (Janet McTeer) and even Zeus himself are not only interested in the opposite sex, as we see in season 1.
Another trans person on set is British comedy icon Suzie aka Eddie Izzard in the role of Lachy. She is not only known for her stand-up routines, which she performs in several languages depending on the location, but also as a genderfluid politician, dramatic actress (she played Dr. Gideon in Hannibal, for example) and long-distance runner who, among other things, completed 27 marathons in 27 days to raise money for a good cause.
So far, eight episodes of Kaos are available on Netflix. It is not yet clear whether there will be a second season. However, its high position in the Netflix charts is a good omen
