Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Tia Carrere is opening up about her son Jude coming out as transgender She tells PEOPLE he's a wonderful kid and a caring friend who loves working with animals Carrere says she's just happy that he's happy, and that he's very matter-of-fact about who he is Tia Carrereis one proud mom. Carrere, 58, tells PEOPLE that her 19-year-old son Jude, whom she shares with her ex-husband, Simon Wakelin, has come out as transgender. "He doesn't love the spotlight," she says of Jude, noting that he did walk the red carpet for theLilo & Stitchpremiere, even though Carerre had to miss it because she was on set doing another film in the Philippines. "He's more introverted, so he definitely won't go into acting or singing like I did. But he's a great artist. I don't know what he'll do! Maybe become a doctor or work with animals. He's working with animals right now." Carerre, who rose to fame in the '80s after being discovered at a grocery store in Waikiki at age 17, and became a household name after starring as Cassandra Wong in 1992'sWayne's World, tells PEOPLE she's super proud of the way Jude conducts himself out in the world. Kevin Winter/Getty "He's very matter-of-fact," she says. "He knows who he is, and he's very happy." She also adds that Jude is a great friend. "He's such a sweetheart, he's like the therapist to all the other kids," she says. "When his friends go out drinking or partying too hard, he's always the designated driver, that kind of caring friend you can always lean on." She continues, "I did a good job with that. But I don't want to congratulate myself too much! He's his own person!" Carrere says that life has been a total whirlwind this past week, starring as social worker Mrs. Kekoa inLilo & Stitch,which is currently the number one movie in the world, raking in$341 million globallyduring its opening weekend. "I love that I'm not a glamorous sex symbol or whatever in this movie," she says of the live-action remake of the 2002 animated film. "It's just good acting and it's empathetic and it catches your heart, and that makes me so happy." She adds that she's embracing being back in the spotlight again and hopes to continue acting, while also singing and recording with her musical partner Daniel Ko. (The duo already has two Grammys.) "I want to be doing this for the next 40 years!" she says of working in films and TV and recording albums. "It's all for this." Read the original article onPeople
