“Doctor Who” and “Arrow” actor John Barrowman is a champion for LGBTQ rights in his his native U.K. and here in North America, and the openly gay actor says he’s honestly concerned with the soon-to-be leaders of the U.S.
Barrowman, 49, holds British and American passports, and sat down for a one-on-one at Fan Expo Vancouver. When asked whether Hollywood has truly embraced gay and lesbian actors, he said the problem isn’t so much with Hollywood: “I’d like to see them be less stereotyped and more like we really are, which is starting to happen. But I don’t think it’s so much the television industry that needs to move forward, I think it’s actually people who need to move forward.”
That statement comes off the back of Donald Trump’s successful presidential bid and although Barrowman believes in a peaceful transition of power, that doesn’t mean he is any less concerned: “It’s a democracy, but it also means that we have to be aware of the things that might be taken away from us because of that decision.”
He then flung his verbal arrows at Vice President-Elect Mike Pence for the latter’s long-ago support for “conversion therapy”: “I don’t care what religion you are, if you don’t believe gay people were born that way then just shut your mouth.”
RELATED: WATCH: Stephen Amell Kisses ‘Arrow’ Co-Star John Barrowman, Fans Go Nuts
He adds: “Let people live! And so when they say, ‘We’re going to be the party for all people,’ well prove it! Don’t take away LGBT rights, don’t ban Muslims, don’t say you’re going to send Mexicans back across the border.
“Be for everybody, that’s what [they have] to prove. And because of the rhetoric that those two based their campaign on, that’s why a lot of us — although [we are] accepting the outcome — we don’t trust him.”
