Elliot Page’s Umbrella Academy character will come out as transgender in season 3

Elliot Page shares a first-look photo of Viktor Hargreeves from The Umbrella Academy season 3

Elliot Page as Viktor Hargreeves in The Umbrella Academy season 3

Elliot Page has revealed a major development to his The Umbrella Academy character, Vanya Hargreeves, three months before the show’s season 3 premiere.

On Tuesday, Page took to Twitter to reveal that Vanya will come out as transgender in season 3 of the hit Netflix series, and will be known as Viktor Hargreeves.

“Meet Viktor Hargreeves,” Page wrote in a tweet, alongside a photo of Viktor sitting at a diner counter.

The official Twitter account of Netflix retweeted Page’s post, writing, “Welcome to the family, Viktor — we’re so happy you’re here.”

The news of Vanya coming out as transgender was quite surprising, as sources previously told Variety that The Umbrella Academy had no plans to change the character’s gender after Page publicly came out as transgender in December 2020.

While it is confirmed that Page’s character will come out as transgender in season 3 of The Umbrella Academy, it remains to be seen how exactly it will be written into the show.

Elliot Page’s coming-out story

Formerly known as Ellen Page, Page publicly announced that he is transgender in a heartfelt Instagram post on December 1st, 2020, which you can read below:

 

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A post shared by @elliotpage

Fast-forward to March 2021, Page became the first openly trans man to appear on the cover of Time magazine. Speaking to Time, Page shared that he expected “a lot of support and love and a massive amount of hatred and transphobia” after coming out, and “that’s essentially what happened.”

Despite those negative reactions, Time reported that many casting directors had reached out to Page’s manager, expressing to cast Page in upcoming films. The magazine also noted that while most of the offers to act, direct and produce are trans-related, Page was also asked to play a number of “dude roles.”

As for what The Umbrella Academy cast and crew had observed about Page after coming out, Time reported that his coworkers saw a positive change in his demeanor. “It seems like there’s a tremendous weight off his shoulders, a feeling of comfort,” The Umbrella Academy showrunner Steve Blackman said of Page at the time. “There’s a lightness, a lot more smiling.”

Page also revealed to Time that though it took some adjusting for his coworkers to call him by his new name and pronouns, he felt seen and acknowledged by them.

What will happen in The Umbrella Academy season 3?

The Umbrella Academy season 3 will start with the Hargreeves siblings returning home to the present after putting a stop to 1963’s doomsday at the end of season 2. Convinced that they prevented the initial apocalypse and fixed the messed-up timeline once and for all, they arrive home relieved, only to find out that things aren’t exactly how they left them.

Soon after, the Umbrellas meet the Sparrows, a version of the Hargreeves siblings described as “smart, stylish, and about as warm as a sea of icebergs.” The Umbrellas immediately clash with the Sparrows in a violent faceoff that turns out to be the least of everyone’s concerns.

Navigating challenges, losses, and surprises of their own – and dealing with an unidentified destructive entity wreaking havoc in the Universe (something they may have caused) – the Umbrellas now need to convince the Sparrows to help them put right what their arrival made wrong.

When will The Umbrella Academy season 3 come out?

The entire 10-episode season 3 of The Umbrella Academy will premiere globally on Wednesday, June 22nd, on Netflix.

Sources: Twitter, Instagram, Variety, Time
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