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IMDb changes dead name policy for transgender industry professionals

Projects before transition will still include birth names

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Laverne Cox, gay news, Washington Blade, Orange is the New Black
Laverne Cox, gay news, Washington Blade, Orange is the New Black
Laverne Cox (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The Internet Movie Database (IMDb), the largest online resource for film and television, has revised its policy on talent profiles of transgender industry professionals including their birth names.

The controversy began when IndieWire reported that two trans actors with major television credits had their birth names listed on their profiles. Despite lobbying from Hollywood management, talent agencies, and GLAAD for the removal of the names, IMDb refused citing anti-discrimination laws.

“Deadnaming” is using a transgender individual’s name, intentionally or not, from before they transitioned.

An IMDb spokesperson revealed to Variety that the policy has now changed and transgender industry professionals can remove their birth names from their biography page.

“IMDb now permits the removal of birth names if the birth name is not broadly publicly known and the person no longer voluntarily uses their birth name” the statement reads. “To remove a birth name either the person concerned or their professional industry representative simply needs to contact IMDb’s customer support staff to request a birth name removal. Once the IMDb team determines that an individual’s birth name should be removed – subject to this updated process – we will review and remove every occurrence of their birth name within their biographical page on IMDb.”

IMDb has removed actress Laverne Cox’s birth name. However, Chaz Bono and Caitlyn Jenner’s birth names are still listed on their biography pages and in film projects they were in before their transition.

SAG-AFTRA released a statement in response to the policy revision.

“While this half-measure is a step forward in protecting the personal safety of and reducing employment discrimination for transgender people, in revising its birth name policy, IMDb admits to invading the privacy of performers and putting them at risk for discrimination. IMDb can make no principled distinction to justify its arbitrary choices about when to invade the privacy of performers,” SAG-AFTRA President Gabrielle Carteris said in a statement. “IMDb has more work to do. SAG-AFTRA and its allies continue to fight to protect all performers and for enforcement of California’s anti-age discrimination law. This change in birth name policy should help make it clear to the appellate judges that the harm here is fundamental and compelling, and that California law AB 1687 is necessary in order to remedy IMDb’s discriminatory practice.”

GLAAD’s Director of Transgender Media Nick Adams also released a statement noting the policy change still puts transgender individuals at risk.

“Revealing a transgender person’s birth name without permission is an invasion of privacy that can put them at risk for discrimination,” Adams says. “IMDb’s new policy is a step in the right direction and gives some transgender professionals in the entertainment industry the dignity and respect that they’ve long deserved – however, it remains imperfect. Trans people with credits under their old name for work in front of or behind the camera will still be affected by IMDb’s determination to publish outdated information. The platform still has a long way to go in maintaining the privacy of all the entertainment industry professionals listed on the site. GLAAD and SAG-AFTRA, along with trans people working in Hollywood, will continue to advocate that IMDb create policies that respect everyone’s privacy and safety.”

Other online databases such as Wikipedia.org and Biography.com do not publish the birth names of transgender people.

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PHOTOS: Fredericksburg Pride March and Festival

LGBTQ celebration held in historic Virginia town

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A scene from the 2026 Fredericksburg Pride March. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The sixth annual Fredericksburg Pride March was held in downtown Fredericksburg, Va. on Saturday, June 27. Stafford County Board of Supervisors Chair Deuntay Diggs led the march alongside Fredericksburg City Council Member Jannan W. Holmes. The Fredericksburg Pride Festival took place at Riverfront Park after the march. Bree Fram was the featured speaker.

(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

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Iran, Egypt play in World Cup ‘Pride Match’

FIFA allowed Pride flags inside Seattle stadium

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(Screen capture via KOMO News/YouTube)

Iran and Egypt on Friday faced off during the World Cup’s “Pride Match” in Seattle.

Iran is among the handful of countries in which consensual same-sex sexual relations remain punishable by death. Discrimination and persecution based on sexual orientation and gender identity is commonplace in Egypt.

Friday’s match coincided with Pride weekend in Seattle. The Egyptian Football Association and the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran both objected to playing in the “Pride Match.”

Egypt and Iran tied 1-1.

FIFA, for its part, allowed Pride flags inside the stadium during the match.

“The FIFA World Cup 2026 is an inclusive event that welcomes people from all backgrounds,” a FIFA spokesperson told the Washington Blade in a statement. “Fans of all sexual orientations and gender identities are welcome at matches and events. General statements of human rights, including rainbow flags and other flags representing sexual orientation and gender identity, are permitted under the FIFA World Cup 2026™ Stadium Code of Conduct and may be displayed inside stadiums provided they are used in a manner consistent with the code.”

Human Rights Watch welcomed FIFA’s decision to allow Pride flags inside the stadium. Outright International, a global LGBTQ and intersex rights group, distributed Pride flags in Seattle on Friday, which was Pride Match Day.

“Visibility matters,” said Outright International Executive Director Maria Sjödin. “Pride is now being celebrated in more than 100 countries, including this weekend in Seattle. For many LGBTIQ people, seeing a Pride flag in public is a reminder that they are not alone, and that their rights and dignity are recognized.”

FIFA President Gianni Infantino earlier this year told Die Weltwoche, a Swiss magazine, that “there will be no ‘Pride Match’ at the (FIFA) World Cup.”

“There will be a FIFA World Cup match in Seattle, and on the same day, events organized by external organizations will be taking place in the city,” said Infantino. “But that has nothing to do with the match itself.”

Peter Tatchell, a long-time LGBTQ activist from the U.K. who is director of the Peter Tatchell Foundation, was among those who traveled to Seattle for Friday’s match. Tatchell accused FIFA of not vetting World Cup teams — specifically Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Ghana, Senegal, Qatar, Tunisia, Morocco, Iraq, Uzbekistan, and Algeria — over whether they would allow gay players.

“FIFA is protecting LGBT+ visibility in the stands while failing to protect LGBT+ players on the pitch,” said Tatchell.

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PHOTOS: Frederick Pride Parade

Second annual LGBTQ march held in Maryland city

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A scene from the 2026 Frederick Pride Parade. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The second annual Frederick Pride Parade was held in the streets of downtown Frederick, Md. on Friday, June 26.

(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

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