25 Celebrity Parents Who Love and Support Their LGBTQ Kids

These inspiring celebrities support their gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, or queer children.

15 Celebrity Parents Who Love & Support Their LGBTQ Kids

Magic Johnson — EJ Johnson, left, and dad Earvin "Magic" Johnson arrive at the 2014 Carousel Of Hope Ball on Oct. 11, 2014, in Beverly Hills, Calif.

If our parents stand with us during tough or confusing times, it’s so much easier to manage life’s twists.

For LGBTQ kids coming to terms with their sexuality or coming out for the first time, unconditional love and support from loved ones can be critical. Yet still too few in the LGBTQ community are fortunate enough to receive it.

Luckily for these LGBTQ kids who grew up with super-famous parents, their devoted moms and dads stood behind them while they questioned, identified or named their sexuality. That’s not to say it was all sunshine and rainbows — however, these celeb parents championed their kids on their journeys.

Here are 25 celebrity parents who embraced their LGBTQ children along the way.

Marie Osmond

Singer Marie Osmond was raised Mormon and continues to practice in the faith, known for its more conservative views on homesexuality. However, Osmond’s motherly love outweighed any religious views when daughter Jessica Blosil, now 30, came out as a lesbian in 2009.

Right then and there, her mom publicly supported her. Osmond told Diane Sawyer on ABC News, “I think that my daughter deserves everything that she desires in life. She’s a good girl. She’s a wonderful child,” said Osmond. “I don’t think God made one color flower. I think he made many.”

In a recent interview on Watch What Happens Live, Andy Cohen described Osmond as the “highest profile Mormon to support marriage equality,” to which Osmond said of her daughter, “Her constitutional rights are her constitutional rights … She knows where I stand, and I stand for her.”

Quote:

“I don’t think God made one color flower. I think he made many.”

Marcia Gay Harden

"Pollock" and "Fifty Shades" actress Marcia Gay Harden recently shared unconditional love and support for her 14-year-old son Hudson Scheel, who is openly gay — and a total genius with makeup, we might add.

Talking to Yahoo about her new memoir "The Seasons of My Mother," Harden explained what her mom taught her about motherhood.

“Mom said she loved all her children individually because they were all individuals. And I understand that completely. It’s about acceptance. My kids are each very different,” Harden said. “My son is openly gay. And, of course, I accept him. I love him unconditionally.”

She and Hudson recently attended the Family Equality Council’s Impact Awards. “The cause is dear to me, yes,” said Harden. “My son is gay. I just want to make sure he gets to have a family when he wants one.”

Quote:

“My son is openly gay. And, of course, I accept him. I love him unconditionally.”

Johnny Depp

“Kids don’t need to label their sexualities,” Lily-Rose Depp, the 19-year-old daughter of actor Johnny Depp and French actress/model Vanessa Paradis, told Nylon magazine. “It’s not that big of a deal.”

She publicly identified herself as sexually fluid, “somewhere on the vast spectrum” when she joined the iO Tillett Wright’s Self Evident Truths photo project, which celebrates people who identify as anything but 100 percent straight. Her dad showed his support for the project by wearing its “We Are You” t-shirt on "Ellen."

"The Pirates of the Caribbean" actor told the Daily Mail, “I already knew because she tells me everything. She’s not afraid to say anything to me. We’re super-tight and I’m very proud of our relationship … I’m there for her.”

Quote:

"Kids are going to make their own decisions, but I guess that the only thing you can do as a parent is to offer support. And I do.”

Ally Sheedy

Actress Ally Sheedy, best known for her roles in "The Breakfast Club" and "High Art," was raised by a lesbian mom, so it makes perfect sense that she’s an advocate for LGBTQ rights and has been nothing but supportive of her son Beckett Lansbury, who is transgender.

When Beckett was coming-out, Sheedy asked this bold question of parents finding it hard to accept an LGBTQ child, “‘Do you love that person or not?’ asked Sheedy.

She and Beckett were interviewed together for the Boom! Lawyered podcast, on which Sheedy affectionately expressed, “I just love Beck, so I wanted to support, I've always wanted to support Beck on whatever the particular journey is.”

Quote:

“It's difficult for me to understand a family member judging or not loving or accepting another family member because they are gay.”

Cybill Shepherd

"Moonlighting" actress Cybill Shepherd has been a long-time supporter of gay and lesbian rights and marriage equality.

“I felt that I was responsible to stand up for the things that I believed in," she told Flagstaff Business News, referring to her participation in gay and lesbian rights marches. In 2010, Shepherd received the Golden Gate Award at the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) Media Awards.

Shepherd also has two daughters who identify as LGBTQ. Her older daughter actress Clementine Ford, 38, who starred on "The L Word" and "The Young & the Restless," first came out as gay in 2009, while dating singer/songwriter Linda Perry, but later settled on identifying as “queer.”

“I reached a point where I didn’t know where the hell I stood on the sexuality spectrum," she said. "That’s when my sister told me about being queer. And it fit. Sort of. If I’m forced to pick. The truth was that still nothing felt truer than identifying as a lesbian, but queer was a close second. Is a close second.” Ford is now married to actor Cyrus Wilcox and they have two kids.

Shepherd’s second daughter, TV writer-director Ariel Shepherd-Oppenheim, now 30, publicly stepped out with her girlfriend back in 2010. Shepherd-Oppenheim is currently in relationship with Eliza Ladensohn, founder and designer of Sloane & Tate.

Quote:

“I felt that I was responsible to stand up for the things that I believed in.”

Magic Johnson

Magic Johnson, now 58, may be an NBA legend and an HIV activist, but he’s also been a loving and supportive dad to his openly gay son EJ, now 26.

EJ broke into reality show stardom on "Rich Kids of Beverly Hills" followed by his spin-off show EJNYC, and has since been seen in various commentator and guest host roles. Although EJ came out to his parents Magic and Cookie when he was 17 years old, TMZ publicly outed him at age 20 by running photos of him holding hands with a male friend. Thankfully, though, his parents had his back when he decide to come out to publicly shortly thereafter.

“It’s all about loving them no matter who they are, what they decide to do,” Magic Johnson shared with Ellen DeGeneres. “And when my son came out, I was so happy for him and happy for us as parents. We love him. EJ is amazing."

Quote:

“You got to support your child because there are so many people who try to discriminate against them, so they need you to support them. Because if you don’t support them, who is going to support them? And love them?”

Cookie Johnson

In 2018, Cookie Johnson joined Jada Pinkett Smith on her show “Red Table Talk” to discuss the struggles and gifts of raising kids with gender fluidity. In the discussion, Johnson shared about the conversation she had with EJ when he was a teen and she started to realize he might be gay.

“The talk wasn't: you can't be this. The talk was: do you think you are?" Johnson said. "And I said, ‘Before you answer that, though, know that if you are, I'm okay with it.’ And so he answered, and he said, 'Yes, I think I am.’”

She continued: “I said, ‘Okay, we will love you and support you no matter what.’”

Quote:

“This is what makes him happy. Let him be happy.”

Sting

Eliot (nicknamed "Coco") Sumner has publicly dated women but prefers not to attach a label to sexuality or gender.

Lucky for the 27-year-old musician, her parents — singer/songwriter Sting and actress/producer/director Trudie Styler — may be the most evolved parents on the planet. In fact, Sting, a human rights activist for many years, said in a 1996 interview with The Advocate, “The whole business of sexuality is very strange to me. I mean, we have all the gay gene, don't we?”

What a blessing to have such an open-minded father — and especially for someone who identifies as having gender and sexually fluidity.

Quote:

“The whole business of sexuality is very strange to me. I mean, we have all the gay gene, don't we?”

Trudie Styler

Last year, Coco Sumner’s mom Trudie Styler made her directorial debut with a comedy called "Freak Show," which has a gender-bending, teen-aged protagonist.

While plugging the film, Styler was asked about Coco and how her daughter identifies.

"She identifies as a musician, and the conversation should end there,” said Styler. “She's a musician, and it’s very empowering. She’s the musical consultant on Freak Show and two of her songs are in the film. I’m very proud of her work, and love her to bits as my daughter.”

Quote:

"She identifies as a musician, and the conversation should end there.”

Sally Field

Actress Sally Field seems like a loyal, heartfelt woman who would fight hard and passionately for the ones she loved. Turns out, that’s exactly who she is as a mom to her 30-year old son, writer/producer Samuel Greisman, who is gay.

Field shared in a SiriusXM radio interview how she helped her son come to terms with his sexuality when he was younger, “I welcomed him to welcome himself, and find that part of his life.” Field, a recipient of the 2012 Ally for Equality Award from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) wrote an open letter in support of the HRC in 2014.

Quote:

“Sam is my youngest son, by 18 years, and he's gay. To that, I say: So what?”

Cynthia Nixon

“Sex and the City” actress and New York gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon, who also happens to be married to a woman, took to Instagram in 2018, to recognize and applaud her trans son Seph.

“I’m so proud of my son Samuel Joseph Mozes (called Seph) who graduated college this month,” wrote Nixon. “I salute him and everyone else marking today’s #TransDayofAction. #TDOA”

This was the first time Nixon publicly recognized that her son was trans. It’s clear she has nothing but pride in her son.

Quote:

“I’m so proud of my son … I salute him and everyone else marking today’s #TransDayofAction. #TDOA”

Sharon Osbourne

In 2017, television personality Kelly Osbourne told Pride Source, “Everybody’s gay. It is a strictly human thing. You can’t put a gender on love … I’m open to loving anybody. It’s about the person. I don’t think it’s about sexuality at all.”

If anyone questions where Kelly’s openmindednesss on sexuality may have stemmed from, just a year earlier, her mom Sharon Osbourne, married to rocker Ozzy Osbourne for over 36 years, said this on “The Talk” (via PinkNews), "I always think everybody is gay – so am I … I am not a little bit gay, I am extremely interested in the fact of what I missed out on. But it is too late now.”

It’s probably safe to say no matter who Kelly ends up dating over her lifetime — so long as they treat her right — mom is definitely going to be cool with it.

Quote:

"I always think everybody is gay — so am I.”

Belinda Carlisle

The Go-Go's singer Belinda Carlisle says her 26-year old son, actor/activist James Duke Mason, came out to her when he was 14.

Carlisle told MetroUK, “When it’s your own child telling you he’s gay, no matter how gay-friendly you are, it’s still a shock. The first thing that came to my mind was: ‘What sort of world is this going to be for him?”

Carlisle is no stranger to the struggles of the LGBTQ community. “Most of my friends since high school have been gay or lesbian … so I was always aware of issues,” she told the Desert Sun.

She has attended recent marches for LGBT rights and women’s rights and gotten involved with the ACLU and PFLAG.

In a love letter to the LGBTQ community during Pride month, Carlisle wrote, “There's a lot of love out there and that's why we celebrate each and every June. I've always been incredibly proud of my LGBTQ following, and I will always be there to stand up for you.”

Quote:

“Pride is about showing the LGBTQ community that they have nothing to worry about — that everything is going to be okay.”

Cher

Even though singer/actress Cher is a proud social activist for LGBT rights and HIV/AIDS prevention, she probably never wanted to live out her son Chaz Bono’s transition so publicly.

Cher told The Sunday Times, “I didn’t have a hard time in the beginning when Chaz came to see me and told me, ‘This is what I want to do.’ I said, ‘Well, if you’re miserable, then you’ve got to do it.’ But then as it was starting to happen, you know, it’s a strange change for a mother to go through.”

The media wasn’t easy on Cher or on Chaz, for that matter, but it finally seems to be settling down for the 72-year-old mom and her 49-year-old son, as Chaz breaks into the acting career he’s always wanted.

After seeing Chaz in his role in "American Horror Story: Cult" in 2017, Cher tweeted her congratulations.

Quote:

“I said, ‘Well, if you’re miserable, then you’ve got to do it.’”

Billy Ray Cyrus

In 2016, singer and songwriter Miley Cyrus told Variety, “My whole life, I didn’t understand my own gender and my own sexuality. I always hated the word ‘bisexual,’ because that’s even putting me in a box. I don’t ever think about someone being a boy or someone being a girl …”

Miley further explained, “I think the LGBTQ alphabet could continue forever. But there’s a 'P' that should happen, for ‘pansexual.' Once I understood my gender more, which was unassigned, then I understood my sexuality more. I was like, ‘Oh — that’s why I don’t feel straight and I don’t feel gay. It’s because I’m not.’”

Despite growing up in a religious Southern family while questioning these social norms, Miley always knew her family would have her back. “The universe has always given me the power to know I’ll be OK. Even at that time, when my parents didn’t understand, I just felt that one day they are going to understand.”

"We've always been very open-minded,” Miley’s dad Billy Ray Cyrus told E! News after Miley came out as pansexual. "Listen, it's all about love and light. Forget the negativity and the haters … She's rocking and rolling and having a good time. What the world needs is love. There's too much hate …The world needs positive influences."

Quote:

“What the world needs is love. There's too much hate.”

Warren Beatty

Although actors Warren Beatty and Annette Bening were publicly silent for years after their son Stephen Ira Beatty, now 26, came out as transgender at age 14, they have more recently made some public pronouncements of love and support for Stephen.

In an interview with Vanity Fair in 2016, Beatty called Stephen, “a revolutionary, a genius, and my hero” and immediately added “as are all my children.”

Quote:

“He’s a revolutionary, a genius, and my hero.”

Annette Bening

“I’m super proud of him,” mom Annette Bening said about her son Stephen to The Observer in 2017.

Then, addressing media commentary about her long public silence on Stephen’s trans-ness, she explained, “I leave it to him to say what he wants about his life. I don’t think it’s fair for me to speak for any of my kids, quite frankly. Not that I wouldn’t like to, ha!”

Bening told the Des Moines Register, "I learned a lot and [Stephen] taught me a lot.”

We get the feeling Stephen’s transition wasn’t easy for his parents, but ultimately we’re glad they stand behind their son and remained open to learning from his experience.

Quote:

“I leave it to him to say what he wants about his life. I don’t think it’s fair for me to speak for any of my kids, quite frankly.”

Anne Rice

“Interview With a Vampire” novelist Anne Rice has long been outspoken in support of the LGBTQ community, which includes her son Christopher, a best-selling author in his own right (the two even co-authored the historical horror novel).

In 2010, Anne Rice, then a Catholic, “quit” Christianity, and the last straw, she said, was the church’s assault on same-sex marriage.

She told NPR, "From the beginning, I've had gay fans, and gay readers who felt that my works involved a sustained gay allegory. I didn't set out to do that, but that was what they perceived … And so my experience with gay people long preceded Christopher coming out of the closet and becoming a gay novelist."

Quote:

“I will no longer tolerate hate speech in the guise of Christian belief with the usual irresponsible pick and choose bible quotes and talk of 'sin' and hellfire.”

Gloria Vanderbilt

Artist/socialite Gloria Vanderbilt is famous in her own right (and her '70s-era blue jeans were divine!), but then her son Anderson Cooper became everyone’s favorite silver fox anchorman on CNN.

Cooper publicly came out in 2012, although he came out to friends back in high school and to his mom in his early 20s.

“It took great courage for you to confide in me,” Vanderbilt told Cooper, now 51, during a mother-son interview for a 2016 issue of People. “I hope you know that I am more than ‘okay’ with it; I rejoice that you are gay! It’s part of what makes you the person you are.”

Quote:

"I rejoice that you are gay! It’s part of what makes you the person you are."

Barbra Streisand

Singer Barbra Streisand is the proud mom of 51-year-old actor-singer Jason Gould (actor Elliott Gould is his father).

For Streisand’s 2014 Partners album of duets, mom and son recorded Irving Berlin's "How Deep Is the Ocean" together. In this interview with Streisand and Gould about the song, Streisand said, “For a mother and son, the lyric was so right for what I felt toward him.”

Gould concurred, “I love my mother, and I know she loves me.” Streisand is more private about addressing her son’s sexuality, but she’s definitely supportive of him and one of his biggest fans.

She is longtime feminist and political activist, and in Streisand’s love letter to the LGBTQ community, she wrote, “Marriage equality is the law and that deserves a toast!"

Quote:

“We’re all unique and beautiful in our own way and entitled to love and be loved by whomever we choose.”

Sade

Singer and songwriter Sade likes to keep her personal life personal and rarely speaks publicly about herself, let alone anyone in her family.

On the other hand, her only child, Izaak Theo, now 22, posts often about his personal life on Instagram. In October 2016, Izaak announced publicly than he was transitioning from female to male. He wrote, “Today is the first day of the rest of my life.”

Sade stays mum about her son’s private life, but Izaak’s social media boasts a strong relationship with his mom. There are happy photographs of Sade and her son Izaak hugging and countless tribute posts from Izaak to mom, who he calls his “Queen.”

Not long ago, Izaak posted about the love and acceptance he has received from friends and family, “I am lucky because I have family and friends that accept and love me just as I am, who see it isn’t about WHAT I look like on the outside but WHO I am on the inside. I know not everybody has that. I can’t say I know how it feels not to have support as a trans person …”

Quote:

“I am lucky because I have family and friends that accept and love me just as I am.” — Izaak Theo, son of Sade

Vanna White

Nikko Santo Pietro, the son on “Wheel of Fortune” hostess Vanna White, has been together with his partner Jaycee “Kesh” Akinsanya since 2013, when Santo Pietro told the National Enquirer (via The Daily Mail), “I have had one girlfriend and never had a real boyfriend. [Kesh and I] are just happy to be together, loving each other in whatever way possible." He then added, “Gay? It’s possible.”

In a recent piece White wrote for Moneyish, she said, “My mother instilled good morals in me, and I live by them … One of the main lessons she taught me was to be kind to everyone, and it’s something I’ve tried to pass on to my children. We’re all the same, no matter your skin color, size, sexual orientation or gender identity. We’re all human, and we should treat each other as such. I live that lesson by trying to pay another person a kindness every single day.”

Quote:

“We’re all the same, no matter your skin color, size, sexual orientation or gender identity. We’re all human, and we should treat each other as such.”

Alec Baldwin

During a 2015 episode of his podcast Here’s the Thing, actor Alec Baldwin got to talking with comedian Amy Schumer about sexual fluidity.

He shared this little anecdote from daughter Ireland: “As my daughter said to me once — because she had a girlfriend for a while — she said to me, ‘You don’t sleep with a man or a woman. You sleep with the person. I’m attracted to that person.’ So she slept with somebody who was a woman.”

He went on to say, “I was like, you know, wow, I’ve met men that I loved as much as anybody in my life.’” When Schumer questioned him, “And you’ve never ...?” he replied, “I’m not built that way.”

Baldwin expressed what sounded like total respect and parental acceptance of Ireland, now age 22. In just a few words, Baldwin also publicly accepted that there must be a spectrum when it comes to sexuality.

Quote:

“As my daughter said to me once — because she had a girlfriend for a while — she said to me, ‘You don’t sleep with a man or a woman. You sleep with the person. I’m attracted to that person.’ So she slept with somebody who was a woman.”

Isiah Thomas

Retired NBA Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas shows up regularly on the Instagram of his son Zeke Thomas (formerly known as Joshua), who is a DJ, music producer and activist.

In 2010, Isiah posed for the NOH8 Campaign with his son. Under the photo, Zeke wrote, "We are Isiah and Joshua Thomas. We posed for the NOH8 Campaign because we believe that all hate and discrimination is wrong. It is time for full equality and equal rights for everyone, regardless of race, sexual orientation, religion, or gender."

Isiah doesn’t speak publicly about his son, their relationship, or his thoughts on gay rights, but as they say — actions speak louder than words.

In a 2013 interview with Out magazine Zeke Thomas recalled, “I came out in 2008, my sophomore year at college. My parents like to say they always knew I was gay. I came out to them, and they were very accepting. I always knew they would be accepting.”

It’s been a life-changing year for 30-year-old Zeke, as he went public in 2017, with his story about being sexual assaulted and is now focused on activism and helping other survivors heal.

Quote:

“We believe all hate and discrimination is wrong. It is time for full equality and equal rights for everyone, regardless of race, sexual orientation, religion, or gender.” — Isiah and Zeke Thomas

Dick Cheney

Former vice president of the United States, Dick Cheney, whose daughter Mary Cheney is a lesbian, took LGBTQ rights personally during his time with President George W. Bush.

At a 2009 National Press Club event, Cheney responded to a journalist’s question about the Iowa Supreme Court's ruling legalizing gay marriage by saying: “Freedom means freedom for everyone. And as many of you know, one of my daughters is gay, and something that we’ve lived with for a long time in our family.”

Cheney continued, “I think people ought to be free to enter into any kind of union they wish, any kind of arrangement they wish.”

In 2012, Mary legally married her longtime partner, Heather Poe. Parents Dick and Lynne Cheney immediately released a statement supporting the union, saying, "Mary and Heather have been in a committed relationship for many years, and we are delighted that they were able to take advantage of the opportunity to have that relationship recognized."

Quote:

“I think people ought to be free to enter into any kind of union they wish, any kind of arrangement they wish.”