midnight snacc

This ‘9-1-1: Lone Star’ hunk has been heating up our screens and making history

Actor Brian Michael Smith poses on the red carpet for the HRC Gala, wearing a black-and-white pinstripe suit with no undershirt.
Brian Michael Smith | Image Credit: Getty Images

Good morning to you early risers and hello all you night owls—no matter where you are, if it’s after midnight, it’s March 31, which means it’s officially the International Transgender Day Of Visibility.

And we’re going to kick off the special day on the right note: With a little appreciation for someone we’re always glad is visible, actor Brian Michael Smith!

Isn’t he a sight for sore eyes?

Born in Ann Arbor, MI, Smith eventually moved to New York City to pursue an acting career, and began racking up credits in television, commercials, and regional theater.

But it’s when he booked a role in 2017 on Queen Sugar—the OWN drama series created by Ava DuVernay—the Smith broke through in a big way. Playing transgender law enforcement officer Toine Wilkins, Smith decided to use the part as a his vehicle to come out to the world as a trans man.

“It’s really important to me to be visible in my work,” he told NBC News at the time. “I just saw how important it was for young LGBT people, no matter where they were in their experience, to see what is down the road for them.”

Since then, Smith has kept busy with television roles, appearing in series like Homeland, Blue Bloods, and The L Word: Generation Q.

And, in 2020, he landed his biggest part yet: The ensemble of FOX’s procedural drama 9-1-1: Lone Star, playing Paul Strickland, a trans firefighter and paramedic. With Lone Star, Smith makes history as the first out Black trans man in a series regular role on broadcast TV.

True to his character’s firefighting profession, Smith stays jacked thanks to regular visits to the boxing gym, which he shares photos and videos of frequently on Instagram (and for that we are thankful).

As one of the most prolific and visible trans actors working today, Smith recognizes the importance of living proudly and authentically, and using his platform to inspire others.

At a recent panel for Trans Visibility Week, the actor spoke out against the recent wave of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and the many targeted attacks against the trans community:

“We’re trans people. We’ve been trans the whole time,” Smith said, as reported by People. “So I never was a woman who became a man. I was me the whole time,” he shares. “You know, you just thought I was but we are who we are. And just because you don’t understand it doesn’t mean that we’re not real.”

“I feel like that’s something I have a really hard time navigating,” he continued. “We have these sort of arguments and these debates where people are trying to tell me about something, and I’m like, ‘I’m the one living the experience. I’m here, I’m telling you, I’m a trans person. You’re not, that’s okay. You don’t have to be trans. I am. Let me live.”

We’re so thrilled to have actors out there like Smith who are fighting the good fight—and look good while doing it.

Is it hot in here, or is it just Brian Michael Smith?

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