‘Blade Runner 2099’ Star Hunter Schafer Opens Up About Her Bottom Surgery and Says She Loves How She Feels Now

Hunter Schafer has never been shy about speaking up for the things she cares about. Over the years, the actress and model has become one of the most visible voices in Hollywood on trans identity, and she has often addressed her experiences on her own terms. That candor has made every new interview a moment worth watching.

She first broke out in 2019 as Jules Vaughn in ‘Euphoria’, a role that made her a household name. This year was a big one for her screen career, as the HBO series returned for its third season on April 13 and wrapped on May 31. She also appeared in the A24 film ‘Mother Mary’ alongside Anne Hathaway and Michaela Coel.

Now Schafer has revealed something she had kept private. In an interview for the November 2026 issue of Elle, the 27-year-old said she underwent bottom surgery in December 2025. She described the experience as amazing and said she loves it.

She explained that she chose to share the news because it might be useful to talk about the tension between ideas and reality. The conversation had been focused on how she grappled with queerness as a philosophy versus how it plays out in everyday life. As she put it in her own words, she felt there was always a tension there.

Schafer also reflected on how she once understood her own gender. For a long time, she said, she embraced the gender-expansive part of herself and found meaning in the idea of making her previous body work. Her experiences eventually led her to reconsider that approach.

She spoke about the beauty of queerness as a space of possibility, expansion and growth, and about finding yourself along the way. She also stated plainly that she is a woman. The comments show a deeply personal journey, one that she is now choosing to talk about publicly after keeping it private.

According to reports on the interview, Schafer recovered in early 2026 in a rented apartment with support from friends and family. Her openness about that time offers a glimpse of a very private chapter. It also underscores the importance of having a strong support system through any major medical decision.

Gender-affirming care is deeply personal, and it is entirely up to each person whether and how to share it. Schafer’s decision to discuss it, on her own timeline, makes her message feel more genuine.

Schafer has been outspoken before. In 2025, she revealed that her new passport had been issued with a male gender marker, even though she had marked female on her application and her IDs had carried that marker since she was a teenager. She said she would never stop being trans, and that a document could not change that.

It was another moment where she used her platform to highlight real-world consequences for trans people. Her comments helped bring wider attention to the issue at a time when policies were shifting. Taken together, her public statements show an activist who is willing to share her story when she feels it matters.

Her career shows no sign of slowing. At the Academy Museum Gala over the weekend, she teased a secret A24 vampire movie that wrapped filming in April. She said it might be her favorite thing she has ever filmed, but she could not share much because the project is still listed as untitled.

The film reportedly comes from director Arkasha Stevenson, who has a reputation for visceral body horror and psychological paranoia. Schafer is also the face of Mugler’s Angel Elixir fragrance and covers Elle this month, which keeps her firmly in the spotlight. Between the vampire film and a busy fashion calendar, she has a lot ahead of her.

Fans have responded with support for her honesty, and many are celebrating how happy she sounds. It is a reminder that visibility often works best when it comes with choice, and Schafer has made her choice with confidence.

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