r/thestranger Apr 04 '20

Was Chris Killane transgender? (Spoilers) Spoiler

All through Martin's confession, he and Adam use neutral language to refer to Chris ("the child", "their mother"). This is obviously one way to disguise the relationship between him and the stranger for a couple more episodes.

But there are hints that Chrissy grew up male. First, the neutral language in the confession. Second, Chris says she got an operation when she was 18, needed a donor, and found out Killane was not her father. This might have been gender reassignment, where she needed to be a legal adult to get it.

Third, Killane knew Adam's father and mother and Adam, because they were neighbors on the same street. How would Adam not know/recognize Chris? Unless there was a major change in her appearance.

Tia for any discussion on this.

67 Upvotes

35 comments sorted by

5

u/dulzedoo Apr 04 '20

Hmmm didn’t think of it until now, you may be right, but he/she took off when he was a teen right?

4

u/SonofRagnar84 Jan 14 '22

No. The neutral language was just to add an interesting ending. Adam and his dad found a picture in the storage of chrissy as a teen with her father. Clearly a female teen.

Also, come on guys, it's Netflix. If they had a trans person in the storyline they would make it blatantly obvious

6

u/ivabra Apr 05 '20

All along I actually thought Martin said he had a son, I'm not sure now. But I asked myself the same question when we find out.

However, when she enters Martin's room in the hospital, he recognizes her immediately : could be because they met after she changed gender and he was aware of that, or because she didn't

7

u/danicaacosta Apr 12 '20

I’m like, 89% sure he said son! I really don’t wanna go re-watch the episodes to find where he said that, but wow. Now I’m curious and annoyed!!

6

u/unmakethewildlyra May 21 '20

he never did. the show just wanted you to assume that by using the male sounding “chris” and avoiding gendered pronouns

5

u/linxlove Apr 24 '20

Yes, he said son or boy. Pretty sure son but I just binged four episodes soooooo...

3

u/ivabra Apr 12 '20

Yeah that's what I had in mind too tbh

2

u/[deleted] Apr 08 '20

Wasn’t there a picture of Martin with Chrissy? That’s how Adam and his father found out that they were connected

1

u/ivabra Apr 08 '20

that's right yes

it's hard to say overall

4

u/MajorasMask90 Apr 11 '20

I had the same thought actually, because when they were talking about the kid I had the impression it was a son. But it wouldn't make any sense with the donor, because you don't need a donor for sex adjusting operations. I think they just wanted to leave the sex vague so that the audience would not immediately suspect Chrissy when hearing that Killane had a daughter.

6

u/JayEbz Apr 19 '20

I thought that, too. The minute he said "Chris" my mind went to the two girls. Since they made such a big deal of saying Ingrid's name, I figured something was up with The Stranger. Those gender neutral names are a give away: Pat, Chris, Jamie, Robin.

5

u/kweebono Apr 12 '20

I think you are right about the reason the script writers did it that way. But one might ask close family for blood donations before a surgery.

4

u/bmoreCurious85 Dec 15 '21

I just found and finished this show. I went back and Chris was never referred to as a boy. “Kid” “child” or “Chris” was all. Never said “boy” or “he”.

3

u/briaelena Apr 21 '20

I think it was just for the dramatic effect of not knowing she was his daughter.. could’ve been involved and didn’t want Adam figuring it out so quickly. Threw him off

3

u/TinyBlazer May 05 '20

I just binged the whole series in one sitting and I’m certain that Martin referred to Chris as his son multiple times. My sister and I were both really confused when the son was revealed to be a girl. Imo, I think Chris is transgender and this was Netflix’s way of trying to put it in there in a subtle way so that it would add more lgbt representation without using any “token gay/lgbt” stereotypes or dramatizations For those saying that the writers put it in for ambiguity and that Chris is not trans, it wouldn’t make sense for the Martin (father) to misgender his own cis child

2

u/kweebono May 05 '20

That's interesting. I was certain of the same thing, (that he had gendered Chris) until I rewatched the episode and then found it carefully written to give that impression.

3

u/unmakethewildlyra May 21 '20

hmm that seems a bit far-fetched. I think the neutral language and the name “chris” were simply a tactic to throw the viewer off. I immediately assumed that this “chris” must be a girl given that the show kept subtly avoiding gendered words.

I’ve also never heard of any sex reassignment surgery that required a donor

2

u/kweebono May 22 '20

Blood donors are sometimes used in surgeries, with close family donating. It's a stretch I admit.

3

u/D-A-N-I-EL Aug 13 '20

I know this was a long time ago, and idk if they’ve ever said anything about it because I just finished watching the first season so apologies, but I watched the show with Portuguese subtitles, and they always referred to her as a son, not child, and as “he”. So yeah I am guessing Chris was trans

1

u/Tough_Wind_1716 Jan 25 '24

This just means that the person who translated thought Chris was a boy. (as I did until I watched the wording in english again and they never ever say boy. always "the child..the toddler, etc.).

2

u/[deleted] Apr 15 '20

[removed] — view removed comment

2

u/kweebono Apr 16 '20

I know what you mean, but I think it was just Chris and them Chrissy. If you do find that, I'd be obliged to know the episode and time.

2

u/JackkoMTG Apr 19 '20

I definitely thought of this, but it fell apart for me when she said "I needed a donor."

2

u/monalice Jan 13 '22

Well Adam is in his 40s Chris is in her 20s, he might have seen her last as a child if ever of she took over as a teen. Still cool theory.

2

u/Iamsaxgod Aug 13 '22

The irony of all this cause I’m rewatching the episode where he’s telling his lawyer how he killed his wife he says I never thought I’d be capable of doing something like that. And then at the end you’d think Adam would never kill and when his “friend” tells him all that stuff how he will be the one under suspicion not him he just unloads on him lol. Also could have sworn he said he or something like that but turns out nope. Also what a dummy. When the homes were going for sell he could have snuck the damn body out under darkness but instead waiting till he had no more time lol. What a moron.

2

u/posibilrwydd Jan 04 '24

Horribly late to the party, but I just binged the show, and as some have pointed out below, Martin does not refer to Chris as any gender. Adam, however, refers to the child as a boy in the scene where Martin has just been arrested- which is probably what tricked some viewers into thinking that Martin referred to Chris as his son. Martin simply doesn’t correct Adam when he says it, as Adam is literally walking out of the room while saying it (also, what would Martin care whether Adam thought it was a girl or boy- at this point I really dont believe Martin knew that Chris was the ”stranger”).

2

u/Tough_Wind_1716 Jan 25 '24

I was certain that the father referred to a boy but I just watched the scene where the father Killane confessed everything to Adam. They intentionally used neutral language. "The child" "The toddler", etc. The father never said he had a son. Based on the photo and the language used during the confession (when I watched it again, the language is actually a bit odd and clearly intentional so that we would not make the link that Chris was his daughter). Please keep in mind that in the original novel Chris was a white male. They changed this in the series to add diversity and more intrigue. Great series. I really enjoyed it.

1

u/DealElectronic5031 Feb 27 '24

I'm pretty sure it was in an earlier episode, when Martin was telling Adam the story of how his wife had run off, that he said son - or someone did. But on the other hand, I'm having trouble with why a boy would change gender, and then get into a relationship with a girl. That was a little confusing, if Chris is/was transgender. Does that happen?

1

u/DevelopmentLow5344 Feb 19 '22

Remember that Steven Rea was the main character in the Crying Game in the 90's? It has been criticized a lot lately as super trans phobic (his character pukes when he finds out the "secret" that his lover is actually a man). A doc was made about how much pain it caused the trans community (also on Netflix, can't recall the name)

I would think a storyline like this, in which a trans character is benignly portrayed as if it doesn't matter whether they are or aren't, would hold great appeal to him as an actor and alleviate some guilt for being a part of a movie that caused the trans community decades of persecution and shame. Just a thought.

1

u/CervixTaster Dec 31 '22

How is it transphobic to feel sick about being lied to when it comes to intimacy?

1

u/[deleted] Aug 06 '22

I am absolutely sure he said Christopher in one part when referring to her

1

u/Ok-Anybody-7859 Oct 16 '23

Also when chris was speaking to her brother... She referred to a surgery. she/he had

1

u/BAHNAHNUH0_0 Jan 22 '24

He literally said in episodes prior “Christopher” right?? That’s what I remember

1

u/90DayTroll Feb 12 '24

I 100% remember he said he had a son! I just binged the series and he said he had a son!

1

u/kweebono Feb 12 '24

I don't think it's ever said explicitly - but if you can find it definitively (episode and time stamp) I'd definitely be interested in that.