Taylor Swift shocked followers this week with a steamy new video, however it’s her good-looking co-star who has captured the lion’s share of the web buzz.

True to type, Swift unveiled her video for “Lavender Haze” ― the opening monitor of her acclaimed “Midnights” album ― precisely at midnight on Friday. Her love curiosity within the video is performed by Laith Ashley, a transgender actor, mannequin and activist.

Written and directed by Swift, the video reveals the 11-time Grammy winner in mattress beside a shirtless Ashley, who doubles as a TV weatherman. Later, the 2 are seen canoodling at a celebration and on a dance flooring bathed in purple strobe lights and fog.

In an Instagram post saying the premiere of “Lavender Haze,” Swift mentioned she “completely adored working with” Ashley, who’s Dominican American and was raised in New York.

Watch the “Lavender Haze” video beneath.

“There may be numerous lavender. There may be numerous haze,” she wrote. “This was the primary video I wrote out of the three which have been launched, and this one actually helped me conceptualize the world and temper of ‘Midnights,’ like a sultry sleepless ’70s fever dream. Hope you prefer it.”

Ashley, in the meantime, mentioned showing in Swift’s video was a “really magical” expertise that he “will always remember.”

“Your storytelling skills by means of your music and visuals proceed to depart me in awe, impressed, and hopeful,” he wrote on Instagram. “Thanks for being an ally. Illustration issues. AND LOVE WILL ALWAYS WIN!”

Ashley’s casting ― which is definitely groundbreaking in a music video launched by a pop musician of Swift’s stature ― drew reward from followers and LGBTQ advocacy teams alike.

Although “Lavender Haze” will undoubtedly be remembered as a breakout second for Ashley, his star has been on the rise for a while.

Having been featured in British GQ and Vogue France, the 33-year-old has been closely centered on performing currently, touchdown minor roles on TV sequence like “Pose” and “Strut.” He’ll quickly be seen alongside Rumer Willis within the comedy movie “My Divorce Occasion.”

Talking to The Advocate in 2021, Ashley mentioned he was grateful for the alternatives he’s up to now been given in Hollywood however pressured that “there’s nonetheless lots of work to be finished” about transgender illustration in present enterprise.

“There’s coaching that must be finished round language; there’s coaching that must be finished round trans folks basically,” he defined. “I’ve learn character breakdowns for TV and movie that misgenders the person … [and] typically, not on a regular basis, it does really feel like tokenism … They’re probably not attempting to grasp. They’re identical to: ‘Oh, they’re calling for range, so if we put a trans particular person in as this character, we’ll get funded.’”