Months after Ellen Page announced she is gay in a beautiful speech at the Human Rights Campaign's Time to Thrive conference, the actress sat down with daytime talk show host Ellen DeGeneres in what we can only describe as one of the most touching moments we've seen on television.
The two actresses discussed what it was like to come out in Hollywood, with DeGeneres telling Page that she felt similarly when she came out in 1997. "I know how scary that is," DeGeneres said after replaying a clip from Page's speech. "I can see you're emotional just watching that. I was like that for a couple years after I came out. It's a scary thing to verbalize, to say it out loud."
Page said it was the scariest thing she's done in her life but was "so ready" and "so excited" to do it.
"I'm so grateful to you," Page said to DeGeneres, "because you did it in a time when it was much harder and much scarier."
DeGeneres came out publicly in an interview with Oprah in 1997. Soon after, her character on her sitcom Ellen subsequently came out to a therapist played by Oprah on the show. At the time, some advertisers decided not to buy time on the episode titled, "The Puppy Episode." The sitcom was canceled in 1998.
"I know what that's like when you're on a show and you just feel like you're waiting for someone to go, 'You're gay! I know you are!'" DeGeneres said.
"Yes! It's just so nice to go to work and have a conversation about an ex...wear what you want...to feel like you're being yourself," Page said.
