Tan France Plays A Gay Dad In ‘Princess Power’ Animated Series – TODAY
When “Queer Eye” star Tan France was a little boy, he didn’t see same-sex couples on TV.
“Not to be dramatic, but it would have been life-changing,” France, 39, tells TODAY.com. “I would have realized there are other people like me out there in the world — and there is a future for me.”
“So much of my life was spent trying to figure out if there was something completely wrong with me,” he adds.
It’s one of the reasons France jumped at the chance to voice a gay dad in the new Netflix animated show “Princess Power.” The series is based on TODAY co-anchor Savannah Guthrie’s bestselling book “Princesses Wear Pants,” and celebrates female friendship.
All 14 episodes of “Princess Power” are now available to stream on Netflix.
France plays Sir Benedict, who shares daughter Princess Bea Blueberry (played by Madison Calderon), with King Barton (played by Andrew Rannells).
In real life, France is the dad of an 18-month-old son, Ismail. The fashion designer and his husband, Rob France, an illustrator, welcomed their little boy with help from a surrogate in July 2021.
“It’s important for kids to see that families all look different. It’s not always a mom and dad,” he explains, noting that same-sex marriage was only legalized seven years ago in the United States. “I want my own child to watch this and realize (our situation) is completely normal.”
France expects there will be backlash — but he won’t be paying any attention. France doesn’t read his direct messages on social media, nor does he do internet searches about his projects.
“There are always going to be a lot of people who hate to see somebody like me on TV,” he shares. “But I stopped caring about the opinions of people who I would never converse with because they’re so close-minded. So if there is any drama around there being a same-sex couple on a kids’ show, I don’t want to hear about it. If you want to be miserable and angry, go do it somewhere else. I’m living a very joyful life.”
While chatting with TODAY.com, France also opened up about his son, who does not appear to have inherited his father’s love of fashion.
“He’ll only wears things with animals, cars or monster trucks,” France says, with a laugh. “He’s the opposite of me. I could care less about cars or trucks.”
“The question I get most often is, ‘Is he living in Gucci?’ No, he is not. He’s in onesies,” France continues. “I’m not going to style him out until I don’t have to change his diaper anymore!”Related video:
