Actor Antonio Sabato Jr. says that supporting President Donald Trump has ruined his career, forcing him to sell everything, move to Florida, and get a job outside of the entertainment industry, Variety reports.
Even before the 2016 election, Sabato Jr. hadn’t quite become known as one of Hollywood’s A-list actors. Known primarily as a soap star before his stint on General Hospital came to an end in 1995, the Italian-American’s credits since the mid-1990s have mostly included bit parts, guest appearances, low-budget movies, and reality TV series.
But all of that came to an end, he says, once he threw his support behind Trump. At about the same time, he gave a speech to the Republican National Convention and gave a TV appearance in which he falsely claimed that Barack Obama was a Muslim.
“I was the first celebrity to come out and talk about the president, and he had my vote from day one,” Sabato says.
After that, his phone stopped ringing, he says. He was cut from a reality television project he was working on at the time, and since then, he says, he hasn’t lined up a single role.
He also attempted to do like many Republican actors have done before him — like Ronald Reagan and Arnold Schwarzenegger — and go into politics, running for a Congressional seat in California. However, he lost to a Democrat.
Unable to get a job in politics and unable to line up any acting roles, Sabato Jr. says that he was this close to filing for bankruptcy, and was forced to sell his belongings, pack up with his family, and move to Florida.
“I had to sell everything. I had to pay all my debts. I was blacklisted. All my representatives left me, from agents to managers to commercial agents. I literally had to move, find a new job to survive and take care of my kids. It’s been terrible. It’s mind-blowing. It’s a disgrace.”
These days, Sabato Jr. is working in construction. He told Variety about his typical workday, which involves him getting up before sunrise, supervising the work at various construction sites. The former General Hospital star talked about how he is in his car nonstop for five days a week.
Despite this, Sabato Jr. says that he still supports Trump and that he still believes that he will win in 2020 . He added that he expects the president to be re-elected by 100 million votes.
“The country is doing fantastic,” the former actor says.
