Dylan Mulvaney says she’s ready to embark on her transitional journey away from the internet

Trans icon and social media star Dylan Mulvaney has revealed his desire to take his transition journey offline after the hype surrounding his partnership with Bud Light.

In early 2022, Dylan Mulvaney, 26, began documenting her experiences as a young trans woman via TikTok, as part of a project titled “Days of Girlhood.” She even brought the series live in a one night only performance in March.

Her profile grew rapidly and she became a recognizable face online and offline, eventually reaching around one billion views on social media. Yet her visibility exploded to unthinkable levels earlier this year after teaming up with beer brand Bud Light to celebrate the one-year anniversary of her coming out as trans.

The sight of Mulvaney sipping from a can of beer with his face on it during a 47-second Instagram video sent right-wing politicians, trolls and bigots into the greatest frenzy of their lives.

Bud Light and other companies Mulvaney has worked with, including Maybelline and Nike, have faced intense and violent backlash, with Budweiser facilities even receiving bomb threats.

Musician Kid Rock bought Bud Light only to shoot it in his garden, while one poor soul even created a “100 percent no-wake-up beer” for those spiraled by Mulvaney’s very existence.

In a new interview with Them, Mulvaney expressed a desire to distance herself from the Days of Girlhood project and take time to go through her transition journey without sharing it with the online masses.

While she knows her video series has brought joy to hundreds of thousands of LGBTQ+ people around the world and given her a new level of fame, she wishes she had taken a moment to think before sharing the first clip.

“There’s a level of me that knows I wanted success … but I didn’t know it was going to be because of my transsexuality,” she explained.

“And I just wish I could tap myself on the shoulder, right before I do that video, the first one, and say, ‘Hey, don’t…let’s make sure you’re in a good place and you’re safe and you’ve had the conversations with the people you need to talk to before you talk to everyone.”

Mulvaney, whose very first public presence was achieved through his role as Elder White in the touring musical The Book of Mormon in the US, he wishes to be known more for acting than being a social media sensation.

“I don’t regret any of the things I posted, but I want to make sure my transition is for me now,” she said. “It’s kind of like redefining a relationship: when it gets too personal, or too practical, it can be hard to debunk it.

“I hope the people who love me are ready when I start doing things that aren’t just the trauma I unload on a camera.”

Before the Bud Light fiasco became one of the year’s most disproportionately scandalous stories, fellow trans superstar Laverne Cox advised Mulvaney — while filming their conversation — to “keep things to yourself” since “everything can’t be for the public “.