IMDb has announced an update to its site policy that will allow individuals to more accurately update their names, marking a response to activists’ calls for an amending of previous procedures that many have argued resulted in deadnaming.
The birth name policy revision was announced in a statement to Variety Monday from an IMDb spokesperson. "IMDb now permits the removal of birth names if the birth name is not broadly publicly known and the person no longer voluntarily uses their birth name," the rep said, adding a quick explainer for those affected by the update.
Removing a birth name can be done via "the person concerned" or by way of their industry rep reaching out to the site's customer support team with a request for birth name removal. Upon determination from IMDb personnel that the name should be removed, IMDb will then "review and remove every occurrence of their birth name within their biographical page."
In instances where a performer had their birth name used in the credits of a production, that name will still appear on associated title pages, albeit in parentheses. This facet of the new policy, the spokesperson said, exists in order to maintain the site's aim of providing comprehensive searchable info on all things cinema and TV.
The policy revision, per IMDb, was directly inspired by comments of concern they had received from "our transgender customers" and industry "thought-leaders" who had urged such a change was long overdue.
Thus far, the move is receiving lots of praise, with credit given to equality-promoting groups and concerned film and television aficionados who pushed for its implementation:
