Elliot Page Says Unnamed Director ‘Groomed’ Him as a Teenager

Elliot Page shared a heartbreaking story from his time as a teen actor in Hollywood, saying that an older male director tried to initiate a sexual relationship with him. Page has written about his life and career in the new memoir Pageboy, which was published on Tuesday. Reporters from Insider saw a review copy of the book and shared Page’s story about the “inappropriate” director in advance.

Page did not name the director in his book, but wrote that it was someone he had worked with. Page believed this director had “groomed” him in the hopes of establishing a sexual relationship, describing a pattern of behavior that is now widely recognized as inappropriate – particularly with a wide age gap and perceived different in professional power. In this case, Page wrote that the director’s “frequent texts made me feel special, as did the books he gifted me.”

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Page reportedly wrote that this whole ordeal culminated in one inappropriate dinner, writing that the man “took me to dinner at Swan on Queen West.” This is a well-known diner in Toronto, where Page spent at least two years finishing high school. He wrote that during dinner, this director was “stroking my thigh under the table,” before finally whispering: “You have to make the move, I can’t.”

Page wrote about other encounters with adults as well, writing that “on a project not long before” the dinner described above, “a crew member had done the same.” He went on: “In between takes he would talk to me about art and films, Kubrick naturally. He invited me to hang out on a Saturday afternoon. After a walk in the rain he grabbed me, asserting we go upstairs. Pulling me in to his body, I could feel his hard c- against me.”

Page described another encounter with a man who worked on the movie Hard Candy, which wrapped when Page was 17 years old. He described how this man had sex with him without his consent, explaining that he was “unsure what to do” besides comply. He also described another film where he said a female crew member sexually assaulted him repeatedly during filming, and mused that being a closeted transgender teen in the entertainment industry made him easy prey for these kinds of people.

“As puberty transmuted me into a character I had no interest in playing, my isolation, insecurity, and unknowing grew. I desperately needed to anchor myself,” Page wrote. “In new cities, with no friends, alone in hotel rooms, it was not hard for someone to prey. I’m sure they sense that.”

Pageboy is full of stories from Page’s life and career in his own words, including many stories about joy, love, and self-discovery in addition to the darker moments described here. The book is available now in print, digital, and audiobook formats.