Liev Schreiber Speaks Out on 16-Year-Old Daughter Kai Coming Out as Trans

X-Men's Liev Schreiber shared his support for his and Naomi Watts' 16-year-old daughter, Kai, after she came out as transgender: “Kai was always who Kai is.”

By Megan Rubenstein May 08, 2025 11:06 PM
| Updated May 09, 2025 2:29 PM
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Watch: Liev Schreiber Speaks Out on 16-Year-Old Daughter Kai Coming Out as Trans

Liev Schreiber is getting candid about his daughter's journey.

After his and ex-wife Naomi Watts’ 16-year-old daughter Kai came out as trans, the X-Men actor spoke publicly about his support for her transition.

“Kai was always who Kai is,” Liev told Variety in an article published May 8. “But I suppose the most profound moment was her asking us to change her pronouns. To be honest with you, it didn’t feel like that big of a deal to me only because Kai had been so feminine for so long.”

And the 57-year-old is proud of his daughter's confidence and resilience as she finds strength in her identity.

“Kai is such a fighter,” he said. “It’s important that she goes, ‘Hey, I am trans,’ and, ‘Look at me.’"

However, Liev knows that not all trans youth have many of the luxuries that his daughter does as the child of celeb parents.  

read
Naomi Watts “Beaming With Pride” Over Daughter Kai’s Next Gig After Runway Debut

Because of this, he explained that he, Kai and his wife Taylor Neisen—with whom he also shares Hazel, 19 months—will be supporting the Ali Forney Center, an organization that provides housing and support for homeless LGBTQ youth.

“This isn’t just about representing the trans community,” he said. “This is actually a community of people who don’t have great resources, who don’t have access to help, who aren’t being protected and looked after by their families."

He continued, "These are people who are being rejected. These are people who are experiencing the harshest version of humanity that we can offer, and some of them are not surviving it."

Photo by Kristina Bumphrey/Variety via Getty Images

As for Liev's advice to parents of trans teens, he noted that it's the same advice he'd give a parent of any teenager.

"Teenagers are a f--king headache. They’re hard," he joked. "It doesn’t matter whether they’re trans or not because you’ll come out of this. But a trans teen is going to be a teen."

Of course, Kai’s transition isn’t the only journey her parents are proud of. Earlier this year, Naomi—who married Billy Crudup in 2023—celebrated the teen making her fashion week debut during Valentino’s March 9 exhibition at Paris Fashion Week.

"That’s my @maisonvalentino baby!" Naomi wrote on Instagram at the time. "I’m squealing with pride."

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