Who Is Laith Ashley? Get To Know Taylor Swift's 'Lavender Haze' Love Interest

27 January 2023, 14:13

Laith Ashley is the latest heartthrob to be cast in a Taylor Swift video, so who is the 'Lavender Haze' star? Here's everything you need to know...

Taylor Swift fans were sent into a frenzy when she dropped her third single from 'Midnights', the music video featured Laith Ashley De La Cruz, a transgender actor and model.

The ethereal video for 'Lavender Haze' sees Taylor cosying up to Laith who she cast as her love interest.

Taylor Swift’s ‘Lavender Haze’ Music Video Easter Eggs: A Round-Up

The 33-year-old songstress took to Twitter to celebrate the drop and praised her co-star in the process, she wrote: "There is lots of lavender. There is lots of haze. There is my incredible costar @laith_ashley who I absolutely adored working with."

'Lavender Haze' is the first music video of Swift's to cast a transgender actor as the male lead, and fans quickly praised the musician for the LGBTQ+ representation.

Taylor Swift teases Lavender Haze music video

Laith seemed utterly overjoyed to be part of the project, he posted to Instagram and had nothing but words of adoration for Taylor.

He wrote: "Thank you @taylorswift for allowing me to play a small part in your story. You are brilliant and this is an experience I will never forget. It was truly magical. Your storytelling abilities through your music and visuals continue to leave me in awe, inspired, and hopeful."

Laith left the caption on a poignant note, writing: "Thank you for being an ally. Representation matters. AND LOVE WILL ALWAYS WIN!"

But who is Laith and where have you seen him before? Read on to get the full lowdown...

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A post shared by Laith Ashley De La Cruz (@laith_ashley)

Who is Laith Ashley?

Laith Ashley De La Cruz is a 33-year-old actor, model and activist who hails from New York, United States.

He began to model in 2015 after Laverne Cox shared a picture of one of his shoots, causing Laith to go viral and it subsequently kicked off his modelling career! Since Laith has walked countless catwalks and shot campaigns with huge brands.

Notably, he has worked for Calvin Klein, and Barney's, and became the first-ever transgender man to be featured in a shoot by Diesel. Laith has also graced the magazine cover of the likes of Vogue France, Gay Times, British GQ and more!

In 2016, Ashley made the leap from the catwalk to the screen when he was cast in Strut, a reality series that followed the lives of transgender models. He then went on to make appearances Ru Paul's Drag Race and Pose.

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