Laverne Cox Praises "Hero" Bruce Jenner: "People's Lives Will Be Saved"

"I think a lot of people tuned in expecting to see a spectacle, and they tuned in and saw a profoundly nuanced, complicated, beautiful human being," she says

By Rebecca Macatee Apr 26, 2015 1:16 AMTags
Laverne CoxMSNBC

Bruce Jenner's transition won't only affect one person, one family, one fanbase—the Olympian going public is changing the way society understands the transgender community.

As Laverne Cox told MSNBC's Janet Mock Saturday before the 2015 White House Correspondents' Dinner, "...what Bruce really wants to come out of this is that people's lives will be saved, and that people will be helped by this."

(At this time, Bruce Jenner has not chosen to publicly identify as a woman and so E! News will continue to refer to him as Bruce and use male pronouns, until he indicates otherwise.)

ABC

"I spoke to Bruce today, and they were really pleased with the way things went last night," said Cox, referring to Jenner and Diane Sawyer's ABC News exclusive interview.

"I think a lot of people tuned in expecting to see a spectacle, and they tuned in and saw a profoundly nuanced, complicated, beautiful human being," said the Orange Is the New Black star. "I thought ABC handled it really beautifully...I had spoken to Bruce several months back, and the same person I had spoken to on the phone, who really just loves their children so much and wants their family to be happy, was the person I saw on television last night."

Earlier today, Cox told Jenner, "This is sort of like another gold medal," she recalled. "And they said, 'This is better than a gold medal."

Learn more about what it means to be transgender at https://glaad.org/transgender

If you are transgender and need help or advice, contact the Trevor Project https://t.co/guMjyYIfng

PHOTOS: Bruce Jenner through the years