The film stars Elle Fanning, Naomi Watts, Susan Sarandon, Tate Donovan and Sam Trammell.

It premiered in the Special Presentations section of the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival, under the title About Ray.

In the film, teenager Ray (Fanning) realizes and pursues his true identity as male and his mother Maggie (Watts), lesbian grandmother Dolly (Sarandon), and absent father Craig (Donovan) must learn to accept him for who he is.

[12] On May 15, 2015, The Weinstein Company acquired distribution rights to the film, then titled Three Generations, in a $6 million deal.

The site's critical consensus reads, "3 Generations squanders a worthy premise on a thinly written story that focuses on dramatic signposts at the expense of genuine character development.

[19] Andrew Barker of Variety wrote: "Dellal's likably chaotic direction and a bevy of solid performances make sure the film's beating heart outweighs most of its contrivances.

"[3][20][21][22] RogerEbert.com gave it a 2 star rating and said that the film takes on the topic of gender dysphoria with a talented cast but falls short in its execution, resulting in a frustrating and unenlightening journey that sacrifices truth for tastefulness.

[23] The film has been the subject of controversy regarding its casting of Fanning, a cisgender female actor, as a trans male character, Ray.

[25][26][27][28] In 2017, Dellal denied misgendering and stated that the comment was "misunderstood", saying, "When I did that Refinery29 interview, it was because I was talking about Elle Fanning as an actress, and I kept referring to her as she.