Out actor Omar Sharif, Jr., the
grandson of the late Egyptian actor Omar Sharif, says he's optimistic
about a Donald Trump presidency.
Sharif, who is promoting a
Kickstarter campaign to fund a fourth season of the queer
supernatural drama Dante's Cove, told gay glossy The
Advocate that while he backed Democratic candidate Hillary
Clinton, he accepts the result of the general election.
“I remain optimistic,” Sharif
said. “I come from Egypt, where democracy is lacking. I
certainly respect the results of any election.”
He added that Trump could be a vehicle
to make new inroads on LGBT rights.
“Sometimes to reach new
communities and make new inroads, you need to use a new vehicle,”
Sharif said. “If we could move LGBT acceptance so it's no longer a
partisan issue and make it nonpartisan, if Donald Trump is our
vehicle to doing that – sometimes it's easier to work from the
inside than the outside. I think we should see where the road takes
us. We should be vigilant, but we should be optimistic at the same
time.”
“I am hopeful the candidate differs
from the man and the president,” he said, then added that he was
“slightly discouraged” by Trump's cabinet picks, most of whom do
not support LGBT rights.