Elon Musk’s Trans Daughter, 20-Year-Old Vivian Wilson, Appears on New Magazine Cover

The daughter of one of the world’s most powerful figures just made a bold public debut — and the internet can’t stop talking.

Vivian Jenna Wilson is stepping into the spotlight — on her own terms. The 20-year-old trans daughter of Elon Musk has made her modeling debut with a striking appearance on the cover of Teen Vogue.

This marks her first-ever cover shoot, and it’s making waves online. Dressed in a suit layered under a sky-blue shirt, Vivian locked eyes with the camera in a confident pose. Her appearance signaled a new chapter — one centered on personal identity and independence.

The photo, now circulating widely on social media, has drawn a flurry of reactions.“She has such gorgeous hair ughhh!!!!! literal goals,” one fan commented, praising Vivian’s flowing locks. Another wrote, “GET HER INTO MODELING,” clearly impressed by her poise and presence.

Some pointed out her resemblance to her famous father. “She has Elon’s eyes and nose.” Another echoed, “No shade because I am supportive of her but I think she looks exactly like her father.” Someone else added, “wow, they look so much alike.[sic]”

Others noted that Vivian looked like her mother. One person wrote, “She looks like her gorgeous mother.” Another added, “She looks so much like her mom.”

Vivian, who publicly distanced herself from Elon in 2022 and legally changed her name, has maintained a low profile until now. In her interview with Teen Vogue, she reflected on the night she came out as transgender. It was late — around 11:00 p.m. — when clarity struck.

“I know for a fact I am trans,” she recalled thinking. For months, she had carried that truth. But as puberty accelerated and personal struggles intensified, she reached a breaking point. “I was constantly having mental breakdowns in the middle of class,” Vivian shared. “I didn’t want to wake up. I didn’t want to do anything. I just wanted to rot.”

The pressure became unbearable. Staying silent, she feared, would lead her down a destructive path. So she took a step. She came out publicly, posting her truth on her Instagram story. “I said, ‘I’m trans. She/her pronouns,'” she recalled.

Two days later, she told her mother. It’s a moment she says she would handle differently now. “She deserves to be the first one to know.” It was a difficult beginning but a turning point all the same.

Vivian’s coming out was met with contrasting responses from her parents. Her mother, a writer known for her supernatural romance fiction, had already sensed something was shifting. When Vivian told her, she offered quick support, brushing aside any shock with a casual, “Yeah, honey. Okay.”

Vivian credits her mom for being a steady presence throughout her transition. She says her mother has stood by her college choices and her decision to go public, even if it brings occasional stress. Ultimately, Vivian says, her mother respects her independence.

Her relationship with her father, Elon, is far more distant. At the time she began her transition, they hadn’t spoken in months. Still, she was legally required to seek his consent for access to hormone therapy and testosterone blockers — a moment that highlighted the emotional and logistical challenges of navigating her identity within a fractured family dynamic.

The divide between Vivian and her father has continued to widen and it’s played out in public. In a July 2024 interview with NBC News, Vivian described Elon as an absent and unsupportive father. She said he was rarely around during her childhood, despite having joint custody, and that he often left caregiving to her mother or hired help.

When he was present, she recalled being berated for expressing queer or feminine traits. The tension escalated further after Elon made public comments denying her gender identity.

In a social media post and interview, he said Vivian was “not a girl,” referred to her as figuratively “dead,” and claimed he had been “tricked” into authorizing her gender-affirming medical care at 16.

Vivian disputed those claims directly. She said Elon wasn’t misled — he simply hesitated at first, then knowingly gave his consent. She said Elon likely believed she wouldn’t push back. “I think he was under the assumption that I wasn’t going to say anything and I would just let this go unchallenged,” she told NBC. “Which I’m not going to do.”

Vivian’s relationship with her father may be fractured, but her connection with her mother, Justine Musk, remains a source of support. Justine, who grew up in southern Ontario, Canada, studied English literature at Queen’s University before living abroad in Australia and Japan.

She eventually settled in California, where she now lives in Los Angeles with her children and dogs. Her past with Elon has long been public.

In a 2010 interview, Justine described their relationship as estranged. When it came to parenting, she said communication with Elon was limited to exchanges with his assistant.

Still, she expressed no regrets about their time together. She spoke of having worked through anger — at Elon for making her feel disposable, and at herself for believing in what she called a “fairy tale.” Despite the bitterness of their split, she acknowledged his brilliance and vision, and said she respected the man he is, even as she moved forward with her life.

Their divorce became official in 2008, shortly after Elon Musk filed. Within weeks, he had become engaged to British actress Talulah Riley, a development Justine described in a candid essay, noting the irony and cliché of the situation.

Their story began much earlier. In a 2017 TED Talk, Justine recalled meeting Elon when she was 18 and he was 19. He pursued her persistently, often calling with classical music playing in the background. She initially declined his invitations to go out — but eventually, the two ended up sharing an apartment in the Bay Area with three roommates.

Today, Justine’s focus remains on her children. And as Vivian steps into public life, her mother’s presence appears to remain steady in the background — offering support as her daughter writes her own story.