The ups and downs in the life of transgender activist, model, writer, and broadcaster Munroe Bergdorf follow those of the shifts in trans acceptance in our culture. From her childhood as a lonely youth in England eschewing her queerness to becoming an international modeling sensation, Munroe Bergdorf is described as a “trailblazer whose fight for equality inspired a movement against all odds” in the new Universal film Love & Rage: Munroe Bergdorf.
This movie is for everyone, especially those who seek to understand what it is like to be transgender and want to get a sense of this directly from the source.
Directed by Olivia Cappuccini (Andy Murray: Resurfacing) and produced by Misfits Entertainment (Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story, McQueen), Love & Rage: Munroe Bergdorf offers a raw and deeply personal portrait of Munroe Bergdorf — renowned author, model, influential trans advocate, and global leader in the fight for LGBTQ justice. As she boldly lives her truth, Munroe confronts relentless prejudice, emerging as a fearless voice for change. More than a biography, this compelling documentary ignites a wider conversation about resilience, equality, and empowerment. The film from Universal is now available for digital purchase and rental.
Watch as Munroe Bergdorf rises to fame to become the face of L’Oreal only to sabotage her own success not long after with a single social media comment in reaction to the racist violence in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Love & Rage follows Munroe Bergdorf from childhood, through her move to London where she finds her chosen family, to her rise to fame as the face of L’Oreal, only to fall from grace when she publicly commented about race on social media. She has since recovered, written two books, been renewed by L’Oreal, and is now the subject of this new documentary.
This inside personal look at a trans individual begins with her childhood, about which she said, “I didn’t want to be queer. I didn’t want to be black. I just wanted to fit in. It was extremely lonely. Dysphoria puts you into a prison of your own body. I think for most trans people isolation is something we’ve all experienced, especially during our childhood.
“But to be friends with things, animals, rather than people… I loved to run around in nature and collect snails.” But isn’t that what the old poem says boys are made of, “snips and snails and puppy dog tails”? Hmmm? “I’m not a human being. I’m a question mark,” she concluded about her childhood.
She grows up and moves to “the city,” where she’s seen calling her mum to ask her to be in the film to no avail. “In an ideal world, I would love my parents to be in this film, but we don’t live in an ideal world,” she says in voiceover.
The film then follows her success as a rising star, getting prominent modeling contracts culminating in L’Oreal wanting to work with her. Everything’s going great until she comments about the racism of white people shown during the August 2018 Unite the Right Rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, which left one person dead and 19 others injured. “Somehow I’m the problem for speaking about the problem,” she said.
And that’s not all as her life’s downward spiral continues when she then also breaks up with her long-time significant other. “I never felt so on my own. She’ll always be the love of my life,” she said. “I just felt like my life didn’t matter.”
With her rollercoaster life now at bottom, there is nowhere to go but up.
With her rollercoaster life now at bottom, there is nowhere to go but up. The viewer joins Munroe Bergdorf as she puts her life back together, something with which she’s had much experience.
She signs with an agency with the goal of combining her modeling talent with her activism to amplify her voice. She becomes the first transgender woman to be on the cover of Cosmopolitan UK: “The moment you have trans women on the cover you are validating our existence.” She has also covered a range of media titles including British Vogue, TIME, TeenVogue, Hunger, Stylist, Time Out London, Attitude magazine, GLAMOUR, GayTimes, and GQ Style.
With a life full of these and other trailblazing ups and traumatic downs, it’s time for Munroe Bergdorf to write her autobiography. “Writing a memoir is a real excavation of your life. Going through it with adult eyes you get to hug your inner child a lot, so there’s been so much healing from it as well,” she said. Her advice: “Don’t keep it to yourself; share your stories!”
The film was produced by BAFTA Nominee Andee Ryder (The Contestant, McQueen) and BAFTA Winner Ian Bonhôte (Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story, McQueen) who is executive producer alongside Helen Parker of Universal Pictures Content Group.
Love & Rage: Munroe Bergdorf is now available for streaming.
