One of the issues that many people now run into these days is when they are mistaken for the wrong gender. This sometimes happens to 37-year-old Elliott Page, an actor who is also known for his life as a transgender.
He wrote the following on Instagram: “Hi friends, I want to share with you that I am trans, my pronouns are he/they and my name is Elliot. I love that I am trans. And I love that I am queer. And the more I hold myself close and fully embrace who I am, the more I dream, the more my heart grows and the more I thrive.”
Elliott spoke about the violence that trans people sometimes have to face. He also said: “To all the trans people who deal with harassment, self-loathing, abuse, and the threat of violence every day: I see you, I love you, and I will do everything I can to change this world for the better.”
He is a star in, Dominic Savage’s film Close to You, which follows Sam, his character, as he comes home to his family since his gender transition.
The character he plays corrects his on-screen mother when she accidentally misgenders him. When asked if it was a slip of the tongue, Elliott said that it was and said he doesn’t choose to dwell on those things unless it is hurtful.
“I feel weird because I get misgendered all the time, and I don’t care unless someone’s trying to…” He went on to say that he wouldn’t correct Wendy as himself.
“I’d be like: ‘It’s fine. We’re going to move on from the moment. It takes a second.’ But, you know, I’m not me. I’m Sam here. And that moment was so perfect because that’s what happens.”
Elliott admits that even his real-life mother sometimes gets the pronouns wrong but it is not a big issue. “She’s pretty good. I’m like, ‘Of course, it’s going to take you a second, Mom. It’s fine. You don’t need to beat yourself up about it!’” He said.
Elliott often speaks about the ups and downs of his gender journey and how it has affected him over the past four years. In 2023, he said the following in an interview:
“In those situations, I know the intent of people close to me in my life who are wanting to get it right. If someone misgenders me, I don’t take it personally.
“When someone does go to apologize, it’s great. But let’s move on to the next moment in our interaction. Let’s move on before it turns into a bigger thing and becomes about the person who did the misgendering and turns into this whole other energy,” he continued. “These things take a second. It’s all good.”
He also said: “For me, it’s about people taking individual time to educate themselves,” he said. “There are a lot of resources out there to learn more about trans people and the reality of our experiences. A question isn’t always a negative thing, but there’s a time and place and context and tone.”