The Religion and Political Views of Elliot Page

Elliot Page was born and raised in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

I've encountered plenty of celebrities who go to Christian schools, but not this actor; he made the decision himself to attend a Buddhist school as a youth, where the curriculum included meditation and yoga.[1]

That early introduction to non-attachment has stayed with him. In a very un-Hollywood comment he said,

Whenever I'm in a place of too much attachment and my old patterns pop up, I try to snap myself out of it. Like, 'Really, Ellen?' There are bigger things to worry about—like the whole earth dying. They're just movies.[2]

So even if he's not a completely dedicated Buddhist these days, it seems to influence his worldview.

Just about as liberal as it gets. . .

You can add Page to the list of liberal Hollywood stars–even though this young man seems to be far removed from the glitz and glamour of the Hollywood scene. He is dedicated to environmental causes,[3] is pro-choice,[4] and describes himself as a feminist:

I call myself a feminist when people ask me if I am, and of course I am 'cause it's about equality, so I hope everyone is. You know you're working in a patriarchal society when the word feminist has a weird connotation.[5]

He showed his solidarity with the LGBT community when he tweeted his support of Obama after he announced his support for gay marriage,[6] and he took a role in a film that depicts the true story of a lesbian couple facing discrimination from the government.[7]

And then to clinch the liberal deal, in reference to his movie Inception, he was asked if there was anyone in whose mind he'd like to plant a seed of change. He picked two of the highest profile conservative figures in contemporary U.S. politics:

Dick Cheney, Sarah Palin–maybe a seed of compassion or holistic intelligence, or maybe some expansion of mind, maybe get rid of some of that fear that seems to be creating a lot of ignorance and thus passing on that fear to a lot of people and causing a lot of problems.[8]

That's a pretty harsh, but also telling. If he could plant a seed in anyone's mind and he picks political figures, then politics has got to be pretty important to him. Too bad for him he's Canadian and can't vote in the U.S., but maybe his influence as a celebrity is even more effective than a vote?