Elliot Page is a 33-year-old actor who has been in the media for quite some time. He is famously known for his role in the movie Juno which got him nominated for an Oscar and most recently for his role in Netflix’s The Umbrella Academy. He recently came out with his gender and preferred pronouns in a letter he posted on Instagram writing,  “Hi friends, I want to share with you that I am trans, my pronouns are he/they, and my name is Elliot. I feel lucky to be writing this. To be here. To have arrived at this place in my life.”

Page coming out has been huge for the LGBTQ+ community as it is amazing for youth when celebrities come out in the mainstream media. It not only gives LGBTQ+ youth someone to look up to. Because many mainstream celebrities are gay, it helps them feel at home with who they are and hopefully is another step to help end the oppression of LGBTQ+ people. It also helps provide more representation where it is lacking. Page’s is coming out has been received with nothing but positivity from the LGBTQ+ community as they have been loving and supporting him since the moment he came out as lesbian a few years ago and now with him coming out as transgender.

However, one thing that has been happening with Page coming out is the media, news stations,  constantly dead naming him. That is when people use the birth or given name of a transgender or nonbinary person against their wishes to go by his or her preferred name. For many trans and nonbinary people, their old names can often hold unpleasant memories of a dark time in their lives. This creates the potential to make dead naming very harmful. Many media outlets have started to use Page’s correct pronouns of “him” and “they” and refer to him as an actor.

The Umbrella Academy is the ongoing Netflix series in which Elliot Page is one of the lead actors playing the role of Vanya Hargreeves, a cisgender woman. Netflix has recently been working on changing his name in all their databases and in the shows and movies he has acted in. Elliot will continue to play her on the show for the next season after coming out as transgender.

Credit: Caitlin Cronenberg