“Literally did almost kill me”: Elliot Page alleges ‘Juno’ movie studio forced him to wear a dress for premiere

Elliot Page's coming-out story and subsequent transition have held indescribable moments of joy for the actor, as he is finally able to "really [see]" himself. However, certain incidents from when he was still closeted dealt a detrimental blow to his already fragile mental health.

In an Esquire cover story, Page wrote an expansive article chronicling the "euphoria" of his life as a transgender man. In the article, he recounts how one of the "worst days" of his life was when he was forced to wear a dress for the premiere of his indie hit Juno.

In the 2007 film, Elliot Page portrayed the titular character, who was forced to deal with the consequences of a sudden teen pregnancy and navigate the tough road ahead of her. Page nabbed an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for his spectacular performance.

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Elliot Page on wearing a dress for Juno's premiere

The Umbrella Academy star recalled that the award-season time during the height of Juno's popularity was a particularly harrowing time for him. He was closeted at the time and made to parade around in heels and "the whole look," which took a toll on him mentally.

Elliot Page admitted that he "wasn't okay" during that whole period, which was only exacerbated by the fact that he "didn’t know how to talk about that with anyone." Page knew that many would be quick to dismiss his experience since having to wear a dress amidst such stardom hardly seemed catastrophic. But deep down:

"I wish people would understand that that sh*t literally did almost kill me."

Elliot Page was distinctly uncomfortable with dressing overtly 'feminine,' but his concerns were flagrantly flouted by Fox Searchlight, the distributor behind Juno. Page, who was accustomed to working in Canada where the concept of stylists and studios dictating stars' premiere and festival outfits did not exist, found himself a fish out of water.

He recounted:

"I think of times when people actively were like, 'No, you need to wear a dress' in very, very, very pivotal moments. I remember the premiere of Juno at the Toronto International Film Festival. I remember going and having the thing I wanted to wear, and then understanding the degree of expectation of how fancy someone is supposed to look. So I said I wanted to wear a suit, and Fox Searchlight was basically like, 'No, you need to wear a dress.'"

Elliot Page continued:

"And they took me in a big rush to one of those fancy stores on Bloor Street. They had me wear a dress, and . . . that was that. And then all the Juno press, all the photo shoots—Michael Cera was in slacks and sneakers. I look back at the photos, and I’m like . . .?"

Michael Cera's casual wardrobe was a testament to the fact that the studio clearly didn't take issue with the informal aspect of Elliot Page's first outfit suggestion. Even if 'fanciness' was a concern, the suit should have addressed that. Page wrote:

"That was really extremely, extremely f**ked up. I shouldn’t have to treat it like just this thing that happened—this somewhat normal thing. It’s like: No. Regardless of me being trans! I’ve had people who’ve apologized about things: “Sorry, I didn’t know, I didn’t know at the time.” It doesn’t matter! It doesn’t matter if I’m trans or cis. Lots of cis women dress how I dress. That has nothing to f**king do with it."

Elliot Page also revealed that while he had expected love and support from many regarding his transition, he had also expected the opposite—"hatred and cruelty and vitriol from so many others." His experiences of coming out as gay in 2014 and trans in 2020 were starkly different, highlighting the vicious grip transphobia continues to hold over society today.