Currently, there are approximately 64 different ways to identify your own gender. It’s very personal to admit that you feel different from the gender you were born with, which is why it’s inspiring to see more and more celebrities coming out about their authentic selves.
We at Bright Side support any way of self-expression, and today we’re turning to 13 celebrities who’ve changed their gender identity and who openly talk about what it meant to them.
1. Miley Cyrus
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Known for: Singer, actor, starred in Hannah Montana, The Last Song, Black Mirror, and more
Gender: Genderfluid
Pronouns: She/her
In 2015, Miley Cyrus revealed that her gender and the gender of people around her doesn’t matter to her: “I don’t relate to being boy or girl, and I don’t have to have my partner relate to boy or girl.” Cyrus is yet to confirm her pronouns but seems to be embracing she/her as she always has.
2. Ezra Miller
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Known for: Actor, starred in The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Justice League, and more
Gender: Genderfluid
Pronouns: They/them
Miller came out in 2018 with an explosive statement: “I don’t identify as a man. I don’t identify as a woman. I barely identify as a human.”
3. Laverne Cox
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Known for: Actor, starred in Orange Is the New Black, Doubt, and more
Gender: Trans woman
Pronouns: She/her
Cox realized that she identified as a female at a very young age: “I knew in my heart and my soul and my spirit that I was a girl.” Even though she received little to no support, her feelings never went away and she fully transitioned into a beautiful woman around the time she was in college. She’s the first openly transgender person to be nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award.
4. Rose McGowan
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Known for: Actor, starred in Charmed, Planet Terror, Machete, and more
Gender: Non-binary
Pronouns: Unknown
McGowan rejects the concept of gender when it comes to their identity explaining that they “don’t want to be a man or a woman, I’m not.”
5. Ruby Rose
© rubyrose / Instagram
Known for: Actor, starred in John Wick: Chapter 2, The Meg, Orange is the New Black, and more
Gender: Genderfluid
Pronouns: She/her
The actor explains that she identifies with both genders, while being comfortable in her own skin: “I feel like I’m neither, yeah. Well, if I had to choose it would be a boy, a guy. I feel like I’m a boy, but I don’t feel like I should’ve been born with different parts of my body or anything like that. I feel like it’s just all in how I dress and how I talk and how I look and feel, and that makes me happy.” Rose used to go by she/her pronouns and hasn’t publicly announced that she would like that to change.
6. Tommy Dorfman
© tommy.dorfman / Instagram
Known for: Actor, starred in 13 Reasons Why, Jane the Virgin, and more
Gender: Non-binary
Pronouns: They/them
The up-and-coming actor revealed in 2017: “Growing up, I hated the idea that clothing was gendered. I identify as non-binary.” Dorfman also realized that they feel more like a woman than a man, but has never wanted to transition: “Physically, biologically I am male, and I’ve never wanted to change that. Yet inside, I am considerably more female.”
7. Indya Moore
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Known for: Actor, stars in TV show Pose
Gender: Transgender and non-binary
Pronouns: They/them
Despite having transitioned from male to female, Moore identifies as neither, but doesn’t mind when most perceive them as a woman: “I’m non-binary but I don’t really talk about it that much. I don’t feel like people really are there yet for understanding it, which I don’t mind, but I also acknowledge the way people see me as a woman.”
8. Sam Smith
© samsmith / Instagram
Known for: Singer-songwriter, won an Academy Award for co-writing and performing the song Writings on the Wall for Spectre
Gender: Non-binary and genderqueer
Pronouns: They/them
In 2017, Smith came out as genderqueer, which means that they identify with both male and female genders. Later, in 2019, the singer completed the journey to their true identity and decided to change their pronouns to them/they. As they wrote on their Instagram: “After a lifetime of being at war with my gender I’ve decided to embrace myself for who I am, inside and out.”
9. Nikkie de Jager
© nikkietutorials / Instagram
Known for: YouTube star
Gender: Trans woman
Pronouns: She/her
Most known by her beauty vlogger name NikkieTutorials, Nikkie de Jager came out in early 2020 as transgender: “When I was younger, I was born in the wrong body, which means that I am transgender now.” Her mom supported her from a young age, Nikkie reveals, saying that “by the age of 6, I grew my hair out, people at my school knew… and I think by the age of 7 or 8 I fully wore girls clothes only, and it felt amazing.” De Jager fully transitioned at the age of 19.
10. Amandla Stenberg
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Known for: Actor, starred in The Hunger Games, The Hate U Give, and more
Gender: Non-binary
Pronouns: They/them
Stenberg is openly non-binary and a feminist, even though they themselves are confused by this combination, as they wrote: “How do you claim a movement for women when you don’t always feel like one?” They didn’t initially have a preference for pronouns, but with time realized they/them feels the most comfortable.
11. Janelle Monáe
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Known for: Singer, actor, starred in Hidden Figures, Moonlight, Antebellum, and more
Gender: Non-Binary
Pronouns: Unknown
In early 2020, the actress retweeted a tweet celebrating being a non-binary person, which read: “There is absolutely nothing better than living outside the gender binary.” The actress paired the tweet with a #IAmNonbinary hashtag, but didn’t clarify which pronouns she prefers.
12. Cara Delevingne
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Known for: Model, actor, starred in Paper Towns, Suicide Squad, and more
Gender: Genderfluid
Pronouns: She/her
Delevigne is openly pansexual and genderfluid. She revealed that finding her place in the world was very eye-opening: “When I first realized that gender is so much more fluid than ‘masculine’ or ‘feminine,’ it was a breakthrough moment for me.”
13. Elliot Page
© Evan Agostini/Invision/AP/East News
Known for: Actor, starred in Juno, The Umbrella Academy, Inception, and more
Gender: Trans male
Pronouns: He/they
Formerly known as Ellen Page, the actor came out on Instagram revealing that he’s trans and excited to embark on this journey. He wrote: “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.”
Do you think we should ask people’s pronouns when meeting someone new? Do you know anyone who’s changed their gender identity?