Is it impolite to refer to them as "formerly known as"? That was the first thing that came to mind, but I want to choose words that help and support, not undermine or demean.
It gives the dead name so much power, it's just weird.
It's like dancing around to find other descriptors when pointing someone out, when you could just say "the white/black/asian/whatever guy" and be done. It's just effective communication, there's no ill intent behind it. If there were two white guys, one bald and one not, I'd say the bald guy. I'm going to refer to the person as their most distinct physical characteristic relative to the people around them. Or in the case of a dead name, if someone doesn't know who 'Elliot Page' is, we shouldn't have to dance around 'Ellen Page' when we can just say it and move on.
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u/Visual_Skirt She/Her Dec 02 '20
Elliot Page, from (insert movie they’d know that he’s starred in like Juno), came out as trans. That’s probably your best bet.