“13 Reasons Why” Star Tommy Dorfman Shared Bikini Photos After Coming Out as Trans

Tommy Dorfman, best known for her role as Ryan Shaver in 13 Reasons Why, has been living as a woman — a trans woman, since 2021. Even though she wasn’t always proud of her body or loved it, after the transition she feels that her body now presents closer to how she feels on the inside and who she is.

Tommy thinks she would’ve transitioned earlier if it weren’t for 13 Reasons Why.

While Tommy is grateful for her role as Ryan, a gay, cisgender male character, she believes that her work delayed her maturation and growth in her mid-20s because being an actress is closely tied to her body, how she looks, and how she identifies. “I also think I made decisions that were just not aligned with how I really was or what I wanted — but out of fear,” she explains.

She views this transition as a reintroduction, not as “coming out.”

“It’s funny to think about coming out because I haven’t gone anywhere. I view today as a reintroduction to me as a woman, having made a transition medically,” Tommy revealed. “Coming out is always viewed as this grand reveal, but I was never not out.”

For Tommy, Instagram is like “a diaristic time capsule” and that’s why she shares about her appearance and style changes on the platform.

After her transition, Tommy shared a picture in a bikini that read: “My body isn’t something I’ve always been proud of or loved; it’s never felt quite right... but to look at myself today, in a swimsuit for the first time since last summer, I can recognize a more realized body; a body that presents closer to how I feel on the inside and who I am. Grateful for this body today.”

Recently she also shared a new picture wearing a green bikini, and we can see from the shot how proud and confident she is in her own skin.

Embracing your true gender can be quite daunting, especially when you’ve lived a long time hiding “behind the curtains.” Today many young people discover their true gender and are not afraid to speak up publicly. For instance, Elliot Page embraced his true gender at 33, after knowing he was a boy all along.