Although not all LGBTQ kids are lucky enough to be born into families who will support them unconditionally, there are a number of celebrity parents who are raising transgender kids — and who have also been vocal about how much they love and support them, no matter what. Of course, there's Cher, who's always been outspoken about her love for her trans son, Chaz Bono. And Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union have shared that their daughter, Zaya, is trans. Fortunately, they've gotten a lot of support from their fans and fellow celebs, and they definitely aren't the only ones raising transgender youth.
In fact, there are many celebrities with LGBTQ kids, and even though some of them are certainly more outspoken about fighting for the rights and acceptance of their star kids than others, they definitely exist. As harsh as the world can be to anyone who seems different, it's definitely a positive thing to see that not everyone is like that — and these parents are embracing everything about who their star kids truly are.
Read on for celebrity families who are raising (or have raised) transgender kids. It seems that regardless of how they identify, these moms and dads are willing to be there for their kids. And they're not shy about sharing how proud they are of them, either. These kids and parents are so lucky to have each other.
More from CafeMom: Zaya Wade Shares What Stepmom Gabrielle Union Has Taught Her in Her First Cover Story
Dwyane Wade & Gabrielle Union
Dwyane Wade's daughter Zaya came out as trans in 2020 and asked her dad and stepmom, Gabrielle Union, to help spread her message for her. Dwyane first shared the news during an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, declaring his support for Zaya and how proud he was to have a child who's part of the LGBTQ community. At the time, he said he was taking the part he played in her life very seriously.
Dwyane Speaks Out
Dwyane has publicly spoken about his love and support for Zaya on several occasions, including on Good Morning America while talking to Robin Roberts.
"We know there's other families out there dealing with their kid finding themselves and learning who they are," he said at the time. "I'm not going to sit here and act like we have all the answers. I'm not going to sit here and act like before our child came home and sat us down, that we weren't ignorant parents when it comes to the world. When I say we're learning from our 12-year-old, we're literally learning from our child."
Introducing Zaya
After Zaya came out, Gabrielle took to Instagram to share a video from Zaya in which she talked about what she would say to other trans kids going through something similar as she rode on a golf cart with her dad.
"She's compassionate, loving, and whip smart, and we are so proud of her," Gabrielle Union wrote in her caption. "It's OK to listen to, love, & respect your children exactly as they are. Love and light, good people."
Jamie Lee Curtis
In July 2021, veteran actress Jamie Lee Curtis revealed in an interview with AARP Magazine that her youngest child is transgender. She explained how she and husband Christopher Guest "have watched in wonder and pride as our son became our daughter Ruby." She later told People that in order to best support Ruby, she was learning "new terminology and words."
"I am new at it," she admitted. "I am not someone who is pretending to know much about it. And I'm going to blow it, I'm going to make mistakes. I would like to try to avoid making big mistakes."
Celebrating Ruby's Wedding
In May 2022, Ruby tied the knot with her partner, Kynthia. And the best part? Her famous mom stepped in to officiate the ceremony — quite the touching show of support. Jamie shared several photos on Instagram from the colorful, cosplay-themed nuptials, adding the simple caption, "Wife is sweet."
Cynthia Nixon
In honor of Trans Day of Action in 2018, Cynthia Nixon took to Instagram to share a photo of her son, revealing that he is transgender — and that she is proud of him for who he is (and the fact that he had recently graduated from college).
The Sex and the City star wrote at the time: "I'm so proud of my son, Samuel Joseph Mozes (called Seph), who graduated college this month. I salute him and everyone else marking today's #TransDayOfAction."
Supporting Seph
Since then, Cynthia has been outspoken about her love for her son, and in 2019, she said in an interview with Us Weekly that it had been a "nonissue" to let him be who he really is.
"I'm very proud of him. It's one of those things. I felt really weird using the other pronoun in public, but people didn't know it yet," she shared. "He was good with it, and it was really nice, actually, when we announced it. There was some general, you know, voicings of support but generally it was not a big deal. I was kind of shocked at what a nonevent it was, which is just how far we’ve come in such a short amount of time."
Charlize Theron
In 2019, Charlize Theron revealed that one of her children had come out to her as trans when she was just 3 years old, and Charlize did not hesitate to believe her when she said she was born as the wrong gender. Although for the most part Charlize has made an effort to raise her children as privately as possible — which means keeping them off of social media as much as she can — she hasn't been shy about her support for them living their truth.
Charlize Speaks Out
While talking to the Daily Mail, Charlize said her main goal is protecting both of her daughters. "I have two beautiful daughters who, just like any parent, I want to protect and I want to see thrive," she said of August and Jackson. "They were born who they are and exactly where in the world both of them get to find themselves as they grow up, and who they want to be, is not for me to decide."
She added: "My job as a parent is to celebrate them and to love them and to make sure that they have everything they need in order to be what they want to be. And I will do everything in my power for my kids to have that right and to be protected within that."
Ally Sheedy
Breakfast Club star Ally Sheedy also happens to be the proud mom of a trans son, Beckett Lansbury, with ex-husband David Lansbury. Beckett is now in his late 20s, and Ally has been a huge activist for LGBTQ rights. She has never held back when it comes to talking about what her son means to her and fighting for his rights — as well as the rights of everyone else in the LGBTQ community.
Ally's Love for Beckett
During an appearance on the Boom! Lawyered podcast in 2017, Ally shared how she felt when Beckett first came out to her, as well as how important it is to her to support him.
"He had been identifying as gender queer and gender fluid and now he was saying he really feels that he identifies with being male and that the hormones were going to help him on his journey," she said. "I didn't have a judgment call on Beck himself, I was just afraid. I was really afraid of the whole [transition] process. I just love Beck, so I wanted to support Beck on whatever the particular journey is."
Annette Bening & Warren Beatty
Though Annette Bening and Warren Beatty's son, Stephen Ira Beatty, is now in his 30s, he was 14 when he first came out as transgender to his parents, and they have both been supportive of him every step of the way. Stephen grew up to be a writer, and he is vocal on social media about trans rights and the rights of the LGBTQ community, frequently sharing his poems that often focus on those topics.
Annette Shares Her Support
In an interview with AARP Magazine in 2019, Annette shared how proud she is of Stephen and the way he's handled the experience of coming out, which can obviously be extremely difficult.
"He's managed something that's very challenging with great style and great intelligence," she said at the time. "He's an articulate, thoughtful person, and I'm very, very proud of him."
R. Kelly & Drea Kelly
Jaah Kelly, one of the children who R. Kelly and Hollywood Exes star Drea Kelly share, came out as trans at 13 and detailed his story for his followers on Instagram, stating very plainly that he is a boy.
"I hated dresses, I liked girls, I didn't want breasts, I didn't want a taco area, I didn't want long hair, I am a boy," Jaah explained at the time in a post that has since been deleted.
Supporting Jaah
Not long after Jaah came out, Drea spoke to VH1 about her love for her son and how truly impressed she was by his courage when he came out.
She said: "All I can say about Jay is he makes it so easy to be a proud mom. For parents, we need to realize, [our kids] have their own journey. Parents get it wrong when they don't support their children. They have to go out and fight every day and face this world. The first battle should not be at home.
"I think that a lot of children in the LGBT community don't succeed because the one thing they need the most is foundation," she continued. "I just tell Jay all the time, baby you won the war. You're gonna have a lot of battles but you won the war. Mama accepts and loves you for who you are. Your family does."
Cindy Barshop
In 2019, former Real Housewives of New York City star Cindy Barshop revealed in an interview with People that one of her twins, Jesse, is transgender, sharing how important it is to create an open environment for him to be himself.
"When a child feels comfortable and open, identity issues are able to be discussed in the family environment," she said at the time. "I believe living in creating an open and positive home so they are able to express themselves."
Defending Jesse
After Mario Lopez controversially commented that parents should wait until children were older to breach the topic of being trans, Cindy talked to People again to emphasize the support she has for Jesse.
"Trans children, they know their identity," she said. "It's not about sexuality and that is the most important thing. Because people are like, 'Well, how do they know?' It’s an identity change, not a sexuality. So that's the one clarification I want to make. And you have to be open with your children."
Sade
Back in 2016, Sade's son, Izaak, came out as trans for the first time in an Instagram post, sharing with his followers on his then-private account that he would be transitioning and starting hormone therapy. According to Teen Vogue, Izaak wrote, "Today is the first day of the rest of my life," in his post on April 10, and he seemed to feel secure in his decision.
In the summer of 2019, Izaak underwent surgery, taking the next step in his transition.
Thanking His Mom
Though Sade has not commented publicly on Izaak's transition, Izaak did share a post featuring a photo of his mother, thanking her for her support in September 2019 after his surgery.
"Thank you for staying by my side these past 6 months, Mumma," he wrote. "Thank you for fighting with me to complete the man I am. Thank you for your encouragement when things are hard, for the love you give me. The purest heart. I love you so much. Queen of queens."
(Honorable Mention) Angelina Jolie & Brad Pitt
Although they're now divorced, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are parents to Shiloh Jolie-Pitt. We still don't know if Shiloh officially identifies as trans, but going back as far as 2010, Angelina has said that Shiloh "wants to be a boy" and prefers dressing in clothes that weren't feminine — although at the time she just attributed it to their style, which she called "Montenegro." Brad has also said Shiloh prefers to be called John.
