Henry Rollins Speaks Out About Donald Trump, Dr. Seuss, And Drag Queens


Henry Rollins was once known as the front-man of Black Flag, a punk band from the 80s. Now he’s an outspoken artist who also acts.

Normally, that would be the description of an actor, but Henry Rollins has been clear in several interviews, that he doesn’t consider himself an actor.

“I’m not an actor. I’ve never had any training, and I’ve learned to act by just showing up and being in films,” Henry Rollins said to an interviewer for Forbes.

Henry Rollins clearly explained that he doesn’t identify as an actor just because he’s been in movies. He just sees himself as an opportunist.

Rollins was in a movie that came out this month called The Last Heist. In it, he plays a creepy serial killer-type character that gets caught in a bank during a heist. That’s not the only acting role he’s had, or been offered, in recent years.

This year alone Rollins has starred in, or been a part of, three other works: Gutterdammerung, Con Man, and Adventure Time. Not only that, but he was offered the part of Negan in The Walking Dead.

“I was up for the role of Negan because Charlie Adlard, who worked on the comic book, based that guy on me and so I was a shoo-in for an audition,” Henry Rollins told Comic Book. “The internet was wild with speculation because in the upcoming season, they were going to introduce the character.”

According to Rollins, he “went for the audition, and there were five pages of really cool dialogue with all these curses and it was beautiful, but I didn’t get it.”

During the same interview, Forbes asked Henry Rollins if he thought it was his duty to discuss the state of politics and the “key issues” while he was out on tour, since it’s an election year.

henry rollins speaks out about trump
Henry Rollins speaks out about Trump [Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images]

Rollins was quick to explain that, although he doesn’t feel it’s his duty to discuss it, it’s important that he does.

“I am looking at 40 years of the dumbing down of America and all of those chickens have come home to roost,” Henry Rollins explained.

Rollins then went on to discuss Donald Trump and why the controversial presidential hopeful was getting any traction at all.

“The only reason Donald Trump is getting any traction is because he is taking great advantage of a very divided and angry America. A lot of people are pissed off.”

Henry Rollins has always been outspoken about his beliefs, social issues, and prejudices.

Funny or Die, a comedy web series, took advantage of that out-spoken political nature Henry Rollins is known for and gave him Oh, The Places You’ll Go!, by Dr. Seuss, to read.

henry rollins
Henry Rollins [Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images]

Throughout the episode, Henry Rollins pointed out misogyny and racial undertones seen in the book and explained exactly why he disliked that particular piece of Dr. Seuss’ writing.

In another interview, after the Orlando shooting happened, Henry Rollins explained to the Gothamist why he has always identified with the LGBT community.

“When I was in Black Flag, we’d sometimes have drag queens open for us. We were friends with drag queens because no one wanted them and no one wanted us either,” Rollins explained.

Rollins told the interviewer that people would chase him home from work calling him names and using gay slurs because of his affiliation with the punk scene.

“And while I’m not homosexual or bisexual, I understand being judged very quickly, and being hated upon by local municipalities, law enforcement, and other tough guys,” Henry Rollins continued. “I saw the same happen to gay people. And so I’ve always felt very united in that scene.”

[Image via Mat Hayward / Shutterstock.com]

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