Elon Musk (53), the chief executive officer (CEO) of Tesla, and his estranged transgender daughter, Vivian Jenna Wilson (20), evaluated their biological father as 'a pathetic, childish man' in an interview with the youth fashion magazine 'Teen Vogue.'
The interview was released on March 20 as the cover story of Teen Vogue’s special issue. Wilson opened up about her father Musk's character and behavior, her experiences living as a transgender woman, and her thoughts on the policies of the Donald Trump administration.
Wilson began receiving gender transition treatment due to gender dysphoria at the age of 16 in 2020, and when she turned 18 in 2022, she obtained permission from the court to change her name, stating, 'I do not want to be associated with my biological father in any way,' discarding the name 'Musk' she previously used. The surname 'Wilson' she currently uses is her mother's maiden name.
She has not spoken to Musk since 2020 and is not receiving any financial support from him.
In an interview with Teen Vogue conducted via the video conferencing program Zoom from Tokyo, Japan, Wilson described Musk's 'Nazi salute' controversy as 'crazy' and noted that she has posted several times criticizing him after seeing news about actions he deserved to be condemned for.
She added, 'It annoys me that people keep associating me with him,' and referred to Musk as 'a pathetic, childish man.'
Speaking about the triggering factors for her treatments, including hormone replacement therapy starting in 2020, Wilson explained that she had struggled with serious mental health issues for several years prior, and during the COVID-19 DAEYU lockdown period, it became unbearable. She stated, 'I felt like I couldn’t endure it any longer,' and believed that continuing to hide her gender identity was a path to self-destruction.
Her mother supported her decision to undergo gender transition treatment, but Musk strongly opposed it and later displayed overt hostility towards transgender individuals.
Wilson emphasized that it is 'very important' for transgender minors to have access to gender transition treatment and that malicious attacks against them must be prevented.
Regarding the current situation in the United States, she said, 'It’s scary. Every time I open my phone to read the news, I find myself staring blankly at the wall for 10 minutes. They are doing such terrible things,' criticizing the Trump administration for systematically targeting the transgender community, immigrants, and non-white individuals to strip them of their rights.
She added, 'The wealth gap is one of the most serious issues in the U.S. right now. It’s especially the case for our generation,' and said, 'It seems there are no good people among the top 1% of the extremely wealthy who only care about their own gain.'
Musk is known to have a total of 14 children with four women. Wilson is one of the six children he had with his ex-wife Justine Musk (52), whom he married in 2000 and divorced in 2008. The first child, born in 2002, died at just 10 weeks old.