Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Jamie Lee Curtis and daughter Ruby praised for discussing transgender journey

‘Ruby and Jamie are so lucky they found each other,’ one fan commented

Maanya Sachdeva
Thursday 21 October 2021 10:05 BST
Jamie Lee Curtis introduces transgender daughter Ruby

Jamie Lee Curtis and her daughter Ruby are receiving praise after speaking about Ruby’s coming out as transgender.

Ruby, who is now 25 and works as a video editor for a YouTube gaming personality, came out to her parents — Hollywood star Curtis and comedy director Chris Guest — last year.

Speaking about her experiences publicly for the first time, Ruby toldPeople magazine that the prospect of telling her mother and father “something about me they didn’t know” was “scary”.

So instead of telling them face-to-face, Ruby said, she texted her mother later who “called her immediately”.

Curtis recalled: “Needless to say there were some tears involved.”

The candid interview has left an impression on other celebrities who came out in support of Curtis and Ruby on social media.

Commenting on Curtis’s Instagram post, journalist Maria Shriver wrote: “Ruby is so blessed with you and you are so blessed to be her mama” along with two heart emojis.

Actor Melanie Griffith left a series of hearts in the comments section while writer Amanda Gorman stated: “Love everything about this”.

Emmy winning actor Niecy Nash, singer Rufus Wainwright, Gilmore Girls actor Erika “Riki” Lindhome, and journalist Katie Couric were among the others that showed their support for the family on Instagram.

Retweeting Curtis, actor and comic Tom Arnold wrote: “When Jamie Lee Curtis and I were making True Lies we talked a lot about how badly we both wanted children. We were over the moon grateful when we got them.

Apple TV+ logo

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days

New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled

Try for free
Apple TV+ logo

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days

New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled

Try for free

“Ruby and Jamie are so lucky they found each other.”

British journalist Louis Staples expressed his admiration for Curtis and wrote: “I love Jamie Lee Curtis so much.”

Actors Morgan Fairchild and Patricia Aqruette retweeted the story that was also shared widely by authors, film and TV producers, and LGBTQ+ activists.

Over the course of the interview, Curtis detailed the process of learning and unlearning that, she believes, was crucial to be able to support her daughter as Ruby embraced her identity.

The Freaky Friday actor said: “You slow your speech down a little. You become a little more mindful about what you’re saying. How you’re saying it. You still mess up, I’ve messed up today twice. We’re human."

Curtis, who described herself as a “grateful student”, ended the interview by asking how she can continue to do right by her daughter.

In response, Ruby reassured her mother that she had done everything she could.

She added: “Helping others is something everyone should do. I don’t think it’s only our household thing. It should be a human thing.”

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in