Tan France Doco “Beauty and the Bleach” Premieres March 1 on Fuse

In “Beauty and the Bleach,” the newest installment of the award-winning FUSE DOCS franchise, premiering on Fuse and Fuse+ on Wednesday, March 1 at 9:00 PM ET/PT, Tan France, stylist and presenter on Netflix’s “Queer Eye,” reveals his personal mission to take down the global beauty trend of skin lightening. The debut falls on Zero Discrimination Day, which honors everyone’s inherent worth and their freedom from discrimination around the world.

Tan did something terrible when he was nine years old that has haunted him ever since. He got his hands on some skin-lightening lotion and started using it on himself. Why? To avoid being subjected to racist bullying and the pervasive bias against persons of color. Tan wanted to be fair-skinned so that he would be accepted by his South Asian community, who he claims saw whiteness as a prerequisite for success in life. This took place years ago in Tan’s hometown of Doncaster, England, yet he still hasn’t quite moved past this traumatic experience.

The industry surrounding the practice of skin whitening has expanded to the point where it now generates billions of dollars annually, and is not limited to the South Asian population. Light and white complexion are in style, whereas darker tones are viewed as undesirable, in Black, Asian, and Middle Eastern groups all across the world. In an effort to better understand the experiences of people of color in his native Britain and beyond, Tan embarks on a quest to learn the truth about colorism, the practice of discrimination based on skin color (and even skin tone) that affects individuals of African ancestry and other dark skin tones.

His trip kicks off in L.A., where he meets Kelly Rowland, the ‘Destiny’s Child singer whose boyfriend’s grandma once described her as looking like she was made out of a brown paper bag. Later, while he’s chatting with locals in Britain, he hears from someone who really pulled off their own skin to shed color. Tan’s personal experience is at the heart of his quest; he goes back to Doncaster to face his demons and revisit a traumatic time in his life.

Tan also delves into the public’s view of beauty and the bigger concerns beyond his own personal experience, posing tough questions about the existence of colorism and what drives it, whether it be communities, history, or pop culture and advertising. He looks for answers in the hopes of ending the cycle that drove him and so many others to bleach.

“‘In Beauty and the Bleach,’ Tan France bravely shares his early struggles to overcome racism and accept his identity in a society that values your looks more than who you are as a whole person. These are struggles reflected often in our FUSE DOCS, which shed light on the inclusivity challenges young, diverse people have today and their successes in combatting bias,” said Marc Leonard, Senior VP, Head of Content and Marketing. “We’re proud to share Tan’s mission to tackle public perceptions of beauty here on Fuse and hope to elevate the impact of his message of self-love and acceptance across our platforms on the United Nations’ Zero Discrimination Day.”

“Beauty and The Bleach” is the latest entry in Fuse’s Peabody and Emmy® award-winning FUSE DOCS franchise of documentaries making their U.S. TV premieres. The series spotlights young idealistic, and diverse people celebrating their cultural heritage and identity, confronting issues, and overcoming prejudice.

“Beauty and the Bleach” is produced by Cardiff Productions in association with Clockwork Films. Executive Producer is Narinder Minhas; Director and Producer is Heenan Bhatti