Jamie Lee Curtis Names Her Oscars Trophy 'They/Them' In 'Support' Of Transgender Daughter Ruby
By Favour Adegoke on March 14, 2023 at 8:45 PM EDT
Jamie Lee Curtis revealed she's using her Oscars 2023 trophy to honor her transgender daughter Ruby. The actress got emotional as she spoke about the win and said she was "very moved" by the award and support.
Ruby first revealed she was transgender to Curtis and her husband in 2020 and said it was an intimidating experience. However, they were very supportive, and Curtis even officiated Ruby's wedding to partner Kynthia in 2022.
In her Oscars speech, Curtis thanked everyone who had supported her journey, including her late parents. In her recent interview, she relived the moment of accepting the award and said she wanted to spotlight "friendship."
Read on to find out more.
Jamie Lee Curtis Names Her Oscar Trophy They/Them
During a recent virtual interview on the Today Show, Curtis held her new golden Oscars statuette and expressed her joy about the moment. According to People magazine, the actress spoke to co-hosts Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb, revealing she's honoring one of her daughters with the trophy.
When Guthrie asked if Curtis had named the award, she replied, "In support of my daughter Ruby, I'm having them be a they/them. I'm gonna just call them them. They/them." The 64-year-old got emotional as she looked at the trophy proudly, which is her first Academy Award after a long-deserving film career.
The "Everything Everywhere All at Once" actress also said that her new statuette is "doing great and they're settling in." As she smiled proudly, Curtis added, "In my life, I never thought in a million years that I would have these couple of days. And I'm very, very moved by the whole thing."
Ruby Guest Revealed She Was Trans In 2020
Ruby, the daughter Curtis is honoring with the trophy, first came out as a trans woman to Curtis and her Dad, Christopher Guest, in 2020. During an October 2021 interview with Curtis, Ruby opened up about the experience, which she called "intimidating."
She said, "It was scary — just the sheer fact of telling them something about me they didn't know. It was intimidating — but I wasn't worried. They had been so accepting of me my entire life." Ruby shared that she finally made the reveal in a text to her mom as she wasn't able to say it in person.
Curtis then said that she immediately called Ruby, and they had a long conversation "with some tears involved." The "True Lies" actress and her husband, Guest, have since been very supportive, and Curtis often defends Ruby from transphobic comments. She even officiated Ruby's wedding to her partner Kynthia in 2022.
Jamie Lee Curtis Thanked Everyone Who Supported Her
In her Oscars acceptance speech, Curtis made a special shout to the "hundreds of thousands of people" who had supported her film career and journey to receiving the award. She especially thanked her late actor parents, Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, and said, "We just won an Oscar together!"
Curtis then individually appreciated Guest, her husband, her daughters, Ruby and Annie, and her film agents. The actress also thanked the directors of "Everything Everywhere All at Once," Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan. She'd won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the film, alongside fellow winners Michelle Yeoh and Ke Huy Quan.
She Wanted To Spotlight Her Friends During Her Acceptance Speech
During her virtual interview on the Today Show, Curtis also got emotional as she relived the moment her award was announced. Aside from being her first win, the award was also Curtis' first Academy Award nomination. She told Kotb and Guthrie, "I'm a little weepy."
As she viewed a clip of her acceptance speech, Curtis teared up and said, "I hadn't watched that. So that was the first time I've seen it." The "Knives Out" actress also shared that she wanted to use her win to spotlight "friendship." Curtis said that she truthfully only "wanted to thank" her friends, but she, unfortunately, didn't.
She added, per People, "My friends who wanted this for me before I ever, ever would have dreamt of wanting it. And I really do feel like 'we.' Because the longing for attention and appreciation for your work is universal. I don't care whatever job you do, you hope someone appreciates you."