Warren Beatty and Annette Bening’s son talks about gender switch in new video
Despite what he's been through, the eldest child of Hollywood couple Warren Beatty and Annette Bening, a 20-year-old born Kathlyn who now goes by Stephen, appears happy and well-adjusted in a new video. The 6-minute-plus clip is part of a series for WeHappyTrans.com, which bills itself as "a place for sharing positive trans perspectives," in which users send in videos of themselves answering seven questions about their transition. Stephen, who says he began his journey at age 14, talked about his friends being his greatest supporters. There was no mention of his Oscar-winning father and Oscar-nominated mother, or his three siblings, 17-year-old Benjamin, 15-year-old Isabel, and 12-year-old Ella. Stephen, who will be a junior at Sarah Lawrence College in New York this fall, says that, for him, it's important "to be frank about my development and be transparent about my changing ideas." He talks quickly and candidly about everything from his style icons (Truman Capote's one) to the change he'd like to see in the world (for people to have a better understanding of others).
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The last time Stephen gained national attention was in 2011 when he spoke out against Chaz Bono for the image of transgendered people he presented. Back then, Stephen referred to Bono as "a misogynist who does not represent us." Bono told the New York Times last year that as a man, testosterone had made him less inclined to gossip, and more gadget-oriented. Later, he explained that, "I bear the guy no ill will. I just don't want anyone thinking that he's qualified to offer Trans 101, you know?"
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By the time Stephen was born, his parents were already stars. Beatty and Bening, who met when they made the 1991 film "Bugsy," married two months after Stephen's birth. While reports say that Beatty has struggled to accept Stephen's transition and Bening has been supportive, one of Stephen's friends told ABC News last year that the story's been exaggerated. "It's been really rough for him — not just (in high school, where he switched schools), but having a family that much in the limelight," said classmate Sam Schiffer. "His father is Warren Beatty. The National Enquirer said his dad was furious with him. No. His dad is a really supporting guy. But his dad comes from a different time and it's hard to grasp a daughter not being a daughter anymore, but a son. He loves Stephen and has not threatened to kick him out of the house. They've had their problems, but he's a good guy."
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