Elliot Page Opens Up to Oprah About Coming Out As Trans

Actor and activist Elliot Page is sitting down with legendary talk show host and media mogul Oprah Winfrey for an in-depth, tell-all interview.

In a clip of the chat shared by Vanity Fair (which is his first-on-camera discussion since publicly coming out last December, and which will be released on Apple TV+ this Friday as part of the newest episode of The Oprah Conversation), the Oscar-nominated Juno and The Umbrella Academy star opened up about his experience transitioning, coming out, and how he is using his time with Oprah to shine a light on the hateful legal struggles LGBTQ+ folks are still facing on a daily basis all over the country.

"It was something I needed to sit with for a moment, because the backlash right now is so intense," Page said about using his platform with Oprah to spread awareness. "But the rhetoric coming from anti-trans activists and anti-LGBTQ activists — it’s devastating. These bills are going to be responsible for the death of children. It is that simple.”

He continued:

"I don’t want it to sound like, 'Look at me.' It’s not that at all. Actually, I was really nervous. But I thought about it for a bit, and it just felt like, 'Okay, the GOP basically wants to destroy the lives of trans kids and stop the Equality Act.' How do you not use this platform?"

In another clip from their conversation, Oprah also asks Page about the joy he's experienced since coming out.

"All the trauma aside that it took you to get here. The courage that it took you to stand in the truth of yourself and do the thing that you've always known you've needed to do. What part of your transition has brought you the most joy?" Oprah asked.

"It's the little [things]," Elliot responds, visibly getting emotional. "Getting out of the shower and your towel is around your waist and you're looking at the mirror and you're just like, 'Here I am.'"

Page also remembers how he's known he was a boy since he was a toddler (he used to write and sign love letters under the name "Jason"), and how he is now getting back to being and feeling more like himself than he has ever been.

"Every little aspect of my life, that is who I was, who I am, and who I knew myself to be," he said. "I just couldn’t understand when I’d be told, 'No, you’re not. No, you can’t be that when you’re older.' You feel it. Now I’m finally getting myself back to feeling like who I am, and it’s so beautiful and extraordinary, and there’s a grief to it in a way."

Oprah's interview with Elliot Page streams this Friday on Apple TV+!