Kevin Sorbo is a prolific actor best known for his role as Hercules in the popular ‘90s TV series by Spiderman director Sam Raimi. Sorbo also played the lead character in the sci-fi series Andromeda.
Despite his relative prominence as a geek icon, Sorbo is a villain to some people on the left who disagree with his real-life politics.
Feminist geeks are now upset about his upcoming role in Supergirl, where he is set to join the cast in a recurring role as an unnamed villain.
“Since his days as Hercules, Kevin Sorbo has brought such a strong presence to the screen and we couldn’t be more excited to have him join us on Supergirl,” said Supergirl executive producer Andrew Kreisberg.
But the feminist vertical The Mary Sue was not happy about the decision to cast Sorbo. “I guess it would be cool to have such a person join the cast,” declared Keisha Hatchett. “But I think in this case, his off-screen persona overshadows what he’s accomplished on the small screen.”
The Mary Sue writer went on to point out all the times the conservative actor voiced contentious views. He condemned Black Lives Matter for its role in the Ferguson race riots—making very emotional comments that he later apologized for. Sorbo spoke out against Hillary Clinton during the election, signal boosting articles that pointed out her campaign’s tactic of smearing anyone who wasn’t voting for her as a sexist.
For these sins, The Mary Sue calls him a “real life villain,” a term best used for criminals or people who hurt others. The comments were likewise filled with vitriol about the actor. “I hate that I spent so long watching this guy on TV,” wrote one user.
“There’s so many wonderful actors that need work and are also wonderful role models and human beings that use their platform for good. Why give work to a piece of shit?” said another.
“He has no business getting work from Supergirl. At all.”
Others on Twitter were just as offended by the fact that Sorbo continues to have a career.
Some even wish death on the conservative actor.
It hard to imagine how Sorbo’s political views would ever impact the way he plays his character in Supergirl. But for a group of people that can’t tell Harry Potter apart from real life, it’s no surprise that they’d also have a hard time reconciling his politics and his on-screen persona.
Ian Miles Cheong is a journalist and outspoken game critic. You can reach him through social media at @stillgray on Twitter and on Facebook.