Elliot Page on His Childhood Crushes and the Movies That Got Him Through High School
Titanic might be one of the straightest movies ever made, but that didn’t stop a young Elliot Page from connecting with it in a very queer-coded way nonetheless.
The actor, writer, and producer spoke of his love for the beloved James Cameron film, among other formative media influences, in a new installment of Them’s Queer Roots video series, in which celebrities share their earliest fictional crushes while dishing about the movies, TV, and music that shaped them.
When asked about his favorite queer-coded media, Page said that “anything that really was making me feel things” could qualify, even if it “didn’t necessarily have overt queerness in it” — which included the box office-breaking 1997 romance film.
“I was very much into Rose,” Page said, adding that his queer connection to the film also stems from Kate Winslet. “Who isn’t into Kate Winslet?” he added.
Other favorites of Page’s that became obviously queer-coded in retrospect included Phantom of the Opera. Page shared he was the Phantom for one Halloween, which he dryly noted made him “a really cool kid.” But as an adult, he sometimes finds himself baffled by figures who are now hailed as queer-coded, namely the Babadook.
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“I’m just hearing about these things. I’m always like, ‘What, ’cause the cool top hat?’” Page said. “I need to dive into this discourse more.”
In the video, which accompanied Them’s August cover story, Page revealed that his first queer crush was Amy Szalinski, the older sister in the 1989 comedy Honey, I Shrunk the Kids — and much to his delight, someone off-screen enthusiastically concurred.
Page also professed his love for Spice World (which he referred to as a “great motion picture”) and referenced rumors of a sequel, which he said “better not have been just a rumor.” “Why am I not in Spice World 2?” he asked, before making his official bid: “Put me in Spice World 2.” We couldn't agree more.
Elsewhere in the video, Page revealed his first animated crush. We’ll only say that he had second thoughts when he remembered that the crush in question had a tiger as a pet, but only out of concern for the welfare of the big cat. He also discussed the characters he saw himself in at a young age, including some Disney favorites and Saturday morning cartoon standards.
For more on Page’s queer roots, including his childhood love for video games, his favorite movies in high school, and his love for Radiohead, check out the full video on Them’s YouTube channel.
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