9-1-1: Lone Star’s Brian Michael Smith Discusses Trans Representation and the Importance of Advocacy | ATX Television Festival
9-1-1: Lone Star fans and fans of Brian Michael Smith were in for a treat when Smith made his first trip to Austin, TX.
On June 5th, 2022, the ATX Television Festival hosted “GLAAD’s Fireside Chat with 9-1-1: Lone Star‘s Brian Michael Smith” where Smith opened up about his thoughts on various subjects.
Smith talked about the importance of trans representation on television, what it’s like filming 9-1-1: Lone Star, how he started working with LGBTQ+ organizations, and his goals to get where he is now.
The panel was moderated by GLAAD’s Director of Transgender Representation, Alex Schmider. Schmider and Smith are long-time friends, which provided many laughs during their chat.
Smith began the chat with an introduction and then an explanation for why the 9-1-1: Lone Star series doesn’t film in Austin, TX.
“We were supposed to do more in Austin with our production. But Covid said, ‘Nah.’ Hopefully, as things start to get more manageable, we can actually come and do more here. But we did a little bit. So I feel like I’ve just been on the fringe of it. To be here and to feel the heart of it actually has been really, really rewarding and affirming,” Smith said.
“It is complicated because of what’s going on in the state at large, at least in terms of the legislation. Because I can tell that the people love other people, and they want people to live their best lives. I can feel that very much. But then there’s just this sense of political football that’s happening with the most vulnerable of our population with the trans kids where they’re using it as a political issue,” Smith continued.
Smith continued to talk about his grievances with current laws and how being immersed in the day-to-day citizens of Austin has opened his eyes to the love in the city.
“I’m glad that I’m here. I can see what the people are really about, and I can hopefully take that and amplify that this is not what people want. They want children to have care.”
“They don’t want parents to be prosecuted for taking care of their children, and they don’t want teachers prosecuted for affirming their students. You know how many young people are committing suicide? There’s an epidemic of child suicide because of all the oppression with these people playing political games. And at the end of the day, there are real people being affected by that,” Smith continued.
Smith’s portrayal of Paul Strickland on Fox’s 9-1-1: Lone Star has the actor making history as the first black trans man to be cast as a series regular. But what he loves most about his character is that’s not all that he is, and that’s not all the show is.
“What I enjoy about this show is, yes, it allows you to get to know this trans character. But also, you get to know so much about him outside of that experience because that’s not all who he is. And then that’s not what this show is all about. Right?”
“So, you get to see how much more life there is and how much we bring to each other on the show. And we come from our own unique experiences. Nobody’s trying to be like Paul. Paul is not trying to be like anybody else. But they all work together, and they respect it,” Smith continued.
Smith also addressed people complaining about 9-1-1: Lone Star being too woke or being fanservice.
“People who wanted to write it off like, ‘Oh, it’s super woke, and it’s this.’ And it’s like, no, it’s what the world is. It’s what you need to do to function because everybody that he [Owen Strand] brought into the firehouse was overlooked because what made them different was looked at as liabilities, but really it was their greatest assets,” Smith said.
“So, if you put all these differences together in one space, you will see how well they work together and how they play off each other. So that was really beautiful to see, just on a larger conceptual level, and then just that’s the world we live in like you don’t get to pick who you work with.”
“I like that it’s a found family. Family doesn’t have to mean who you’re related to by blood, it can mean who you are connected to on this deeper level, and all our characters have to find those connections. I feel like it’s a cool guide for people who watch the show to kind of see how you can navigate the world and celebrate these things that you feel like you have to hide, shave off, change, or dial down,” Smith continued.
Schmider then moved the conversation and got Smith to talk about what it’s like navigating being an advocate and actor and how it all began. “Even though I’ve always wanted to act, there was this period of time, especially while I was transitioning, and like just getting to be myself and one with my own body, where I [thought], I don’t know if that could ever happen.”
“Because maybe if I act, and they find out about me, I’m never going to get cast. I just had all these fears that were, you know, justifiable, but they kept me from really doing, so I did a lot of acting adjacent work,” Smith said.
His involvement with the LGBT Center in New York City started Smith’s organization work and his love for inspiring others. During his time of finding his footing, he decided that he would do whatever he could to live as visibly as a trans man so that he could influence others.
In following his path to reach as many people as possible to encourage children and other trans people across the world, he decided to attend acting school. “I went back to school, and I did acting training, and I was just locked in on learning the business learning the acting, and really going for it in a way that I hadn’t really committed before.”
“I want to be the representation I didn’t see. I want to be what Laverne Cox is to me right now, which is a black trans woman, and she’s playing a really fleshed-out authentic trans woman on Orange Is the New Black. And like, that’s where I want to go, that’s what I want to talk about. So, I locked in on that,” Smith continued.
From that moment on, Smith did just that. He got his first recurring role on Queen Sugar, where he played a trans masc male character. It was something that he hadn’t seen on television yet, which excited him to join the project, but he wanted more simultaneously. After that point, he then made his way into working with GLAAD.
“People are putting in work, and we’ve really been out here. I realized I might not be somebody who is organizing a rally like boots on the ground. I’m not necessarily going to City Hall or speaking to senators and whatnot. I’m an artist. But, you know, I can still do more,” Smith said. “With the advocacy, by joining organizations, by speaking and participating in panels and things like GLAAD, which is helpful.”
“Being a board member for a large organization that’s doing the work that helps amplify the voices of — I feel like I’ve found a balance. So, when I’m in production, I’m doing what I can. But hopefully, the work I’m doing as an artist helps, which I feel like it does.”
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9-1-1: Lone Star will return sometime in 2023 on FOX.
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Cade Taylor
Cade Taylor is a television and film critic living in St. Louis, Missouri. He is a Senior Writer for Tell-Tale TV. His love for television developed at a young age, with a concentration on queer stories, sitcoms, teen dramas, and science fiction thrillers. In addition, he works full-time as a news producer, telling the stories of Missourians and helming "Produced in the Bi-State," a segment spotlighting actors, musicians, and entertainers from the St. Louis area. He can be reached by email at cade@telltaletv.com.