Star Page tells of gender anxiety
ACTOR Elliot Page said he collapsed after suffering a likely panic attack triggered by wearing feminine clothes during the promotion of blockbuster film Inception.
Page came out as a transgender man in December and is best-known for his Oscar-nominated role in 2007 coming-ofage drama Juno, and more recently for starring in Netflix superhero series The Umbrella Academy.
The 34-year-old also starred alongside Leonardo DiCaprio and Cillian Murphy in Christopher Nolan’s 2011 thriller Inception.
During an interview with Oprah Winfrey for the chat show host’s Apple TV+ series, Page said he suffered a probable panic attack during the promotion of the film.
Page had been wearing dresses and heels for events, he said, and the stress came to a head following the Paris premiere.
His manager, whom Page said remains “like family,” presented him with three dresses in his hotel room.
He told Winfrey: “And I just like, I lost it. I got so... it was like a cinematic moment. The kind of thing that would be in a movie.
“And that night after the premiere and at the after party I collapsed.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Page said his top surgery – where breast tissue is removed – was life-saving.
Asked by Winfrey what prompted him to speak publicly about the surgery, he said: “I wanted to talk about it for a couple of reasons – I wanted to share with people just how much it has changed my life and I want people to know that not only has it been life lifechanging for me, I do believe it’s life-saving and it’s the case for so many people.”
The Elliot Page episode of The Oprah Conversation is streaming now on Apple TV+.