Antonio Sabato Jr. claims that his acting career has suffered as a result of his support for President Donald Trump.

Sabato stated in a phone interview with Variety from his new home in Florida: “I had to sell everything. I had to pay all my debts. I was blacklisted.”

Sabato told Variety, “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. It’s tough because if you’re in that environment in Hollywood and you have something to say that they don’t like, they’re going to let you know.”

Despite a 30-year acting career, Sabato alleges he was unable to secure new assignments following the election. He claims he was fired from a reality television competition show because of his political views. He ran unsuccessfully for a congressional seat in California in 2018, where he was beaten by a Democrat.

Paul Morigi/Getty Images/Associated Press/Carolyn Kaster

Sabato, a former Calvin Klein model who appeared on “Melrose Place,” “General Hospital,” and “The Bold and the Beautiful,” claimed he was forced to relocate from California to Florida, where he currently works in construction.

“I go on the job at two in the morning, and I’m making sure that the job is controlled and supervised by me,” he told Variety. “I’m in the car all day, driving, going through all the sites. Five days a week, nonstop.”

Sabato’s IMDb page, notwithstanding the interview, shows four upcoming credits: one TV program and three films. It also includes two credits from 2019.

The actor also discussed how projects he was working on fell through owing to his political views.

“I was talking to a distribution company about producing a film that was set to go, and they told me to my face, ‘We will never distribute a movie with you in it because of your affiliation with the president,’” he stated. “The reality is the power that makes movies happen in Hollywood-–casting directors, producers, executive producers, directors-–they’re all liberal. They hate anyone or anything who supports this president.”

In July 2016, Sabato was one of the few celebrities invited to speak at the Republican National Convention. In an appearance with ABC that month, the actor made headlines by insisting that then-President Barack Obama was “absolutely” a Muslim, reiterating one of Trump’s birther conspiracy theories.

Former US President Donald Trump (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

That event may have hastened his departure from performing. Sabato adds, “I was the first celebrity to come out and talk about the president, and he had my vote from day one. I was the first one to say he was going to win. My integrity is intact. What I believe in is still intact. What doesn’t break you makes you stronger–that’s what they say. So I’m stronger than ever, and I didn’t have to lie about who I am.”

Many other Trump supporters in the entertainment sector, he claims, are afraid to come out. “I know a lot of actors who are lying about who they’re going to vote for because they don’t want the crap,” Sabato adds. “They won’t want to be talked about and fired from movie sets. This is serious.”

Even when Sabato tried to work with his previous agency again, they turned him down.

He stated, “They all said, ‘No, we’re not going to represent you.’ Not a reason. Just no, plain and simple. They wouldn’t touch me because it would be too tough to get me a job.”