The war between father and daughter has been going on for years, but in recent weeks, Wilson has publicly declared war on her father, after Musk took a far-right turn against the transgender community — a community she is a part of.
It’s hard for a 20-year-old to be at the center of a global conversation—especially when all you want to do is stay away from it all, to not be a part of it anymore. But Vivian Jenna Wilson lives by the motto: “If you can’t beat them, join them.” She’s gone all out to speak up, while keeping a clear distance from her father: Elon Musk—the world’s richest man and President Donald Trump’s right-hand man.
The war between father and daughter has been going on for years, but in recent weeks, Wilson has publicly declared war on her father, after Musk took a far-right turn against the transgender community — a community she is a part of.
Wilson decided to “go big” with two interviews, in which she introduced herself more clearly so that the public could understand and sympathize with her better, and at the same time, she also took the opportunity to publicly criticize her father.
Wilson’s views have previously been confined to large social media platforms, and she has only appeared once, almost a year ago, in a brief conversation with NBC. But this time, she spent an hour and a half chatting with popular YouTuber Hasan Piker, and appeared on the cover of Teen Vogue—the “little brother” of the powerful fashion magazine Vogue—in an in-depth interview. Her statements have attracted public attention at a time when Elon Musk—one of the most famous people in America and the world—is attracting special attention.
The father and son haven’t spoken in five years. The rift between Musk and Wilson has deepened over time, to the point where they no longer share a last name. But five years ago, things weren’t so tense.
“I’m all for transgender people, but all these pronouns are an aesthetic nightmare,” the Tesla founder tweeted in 2020, when his daughter was 17 and had not yet formally requested a legal gender or name change. In April 2022, as an adult and as permitted under California law, Wilson filed a court petition to legally change her gender, given name, and surname, dropping her father’s surname and adopting her mother’s. A staunch defender of the transgender community, she made it clear: “I don’t think people understand that being transgender is not a choice.”
Meanwhile, Musk’s “absolute support” for the transgender community has taken a conservative turn. He has kept his daughter’s original name. On March 22, Musk said of his daughter on X that she had been “killed by the awakening virus.”
For her part, in an interview with Teen Vogue, Wilson said that her father has moved to the right, but that what he preaches today isn’t too far from his long-held beliefs
n a YouTube chat with Piker, Wilson explained that many people think her father’s move to the extreme right is her fault, because he’s transgender. “Unfortunately, I can’t take credit for that.” Musk “is not a favorite of liberals,” Wilson told the magazine. “I know him, he’s never been left-wing. It’s a marketing ploy.”
Wilson admits she is appalled by the policies of her father and the current administration. “What they are doing is appalling, not just to the trans community, but to immigrants, to communities of color, to so many minority communities that are being systematically targeted and stripped of protections by this new administration.”
For all of these reasons, Wilson wants nothing to do with her father anymore. “I don’t let anyone else have that space in my mind,” she told Teen Vogue. “The only thing that’s allowed to live freely in my mind is drag queens,” she laughs.
Despite not having spoken to her father for five years, Wilson is not shy about mentioning him. “I saw stories about him in the paper and thought, Oh my gosh, this is so embarrassing, I should post something to refute it—and I did a few times,” she admits. “That Nazi salute was crazy,” she says, referring to the billionaire’s controversial gesture at President Trump’s inauguration.
“Why should I be afraid of him? Oh, is he powerful? No, no, no. I don’t care. Why should I be afraid of a man like that? Because he’s rich? Oh no, I’m shaking,” Wilson said.
Despite having the world’s richest father, Wilson insists she is not dependent on him, and hasn’t been for five years. She has explained to her millions of followers on social media (Twitch, Threads, and Bluesky, but not X) that she wants to distance herself financially from her father. Some have sent Wilson money through various apps, but she has asked them to stop.
Vivian Wilson and twin Griffin are the eldest of Elon Musk’s 14 children, following the death of their first child Nevada Alexander, who died at 10 weeks of age from sudden infant death syndrome. Elon and Justine then decided to undergo fertility treatment and the twins Wilson and Griffin were born. Two years later, in 2006, Justine gave birth to triplets – three boys now 18 years old named Kai, Saxon and Damian.
Elon Musk and son X Æ A-Xii in the Oval Office with President Trump, on February 11, 2025. Photo: Getty Images/Washington Post
After those six children, Musk—a proponent of increasing the birth rate to repopulate the planet—gave birth to X Æ A-Xii in 2020 with singer Grimes. The boy, known simply as X, is often photographed with his father inside the White House. Musk and Grimes also have two other children, Exa Dark Sideræl (born via surrogacy in December 2021) and Techno Mechanicus, nicknamed Tau, born in June 2022; he is currently in a legal battle with the baby’s mother over custody.
With Shivon Zilis, an executive at his company Neuralink, Musk also has four children: twins (a boy named Strider and a girl named Azure), born in secret in November 2021; a girl named Arcadia, born in June 2024; and a boy named Seldon Lycurgus, born last February. That same month, it was revealed that Musk and children’s author Ashley St. Clair have a son — known only by his initials RSC — who was born around September 2024.
“I actually don’t know how many siblings I have, if you count half-siblings. It’s just a fun fact,” Wilson said in an interview with Teen Vogue.
The Teen Vogue interview and YouTube conversation became a viral story, especially in a deeply polarized America where Elon Musk’s image inspires both passion and hatred.
Vivian Wilson is more herself than ever and now has her own calling card to the world. It remains to be seen whether she can become more than just someone’s daughter and, as she so desires, forge her own identity.
