In a historic move, CBS announced its first transgender house guest, Audrey Middleton, for the 17th season of the hit show "Big Brother" on June 16.
The 25-year-old media consultant from Georgia is expected to open up about herself in the premiere episode scheduled to be aired on June 24.
A CBS spokesperson informed in a statement that the new contestant was quite frank about her gender identity and even mentioned the transition process in her online application, when she applied to become a house guest in the show.
According to TMZ, the new contestant was formerly known as Adam Middleton and grew up in a small Georgia town as a boy, who later underwent a difficult journey toward transitioning into a female. Although her family had a tough time accepting her reality, they are now fully supportive.
"I just want to say I hope you watch with compassion and an open mind, to learn something about a community you may not be familiar with," said Julie Chen emotionally, who hosts the reality competition, People reported. "Big Brother" is otherwise infamous for its house guest making racist and homophobic comments on camera, due to which the channel is often forced to condone their behavior.
Audrey, a fan of "Big Brother," will be competing against 13 other people, including a professional poker player, a dentist and a former WWE pro wrestler, on the long-running reality show.
Audrey's inclusion in the upcoming season of the reality show comes two months after another reality TV star disclosed her gender identity. Caitlyn Jenner, who was formerly known as Bruce Jenner, revealed her new identity by appearing as a woman on the cover of the fashion magazine Vanity Fair.