Actor Ricky Schroder dragged for anti-trans tribute to Dolly Parton

This story originally appeared on Out.

A social media post by actor Ricky Schroder, saluting queer icon Dolly Parton, has sparked an online backlash for being transphobic, anti-vax and embarrassingly self-centered.

Instead of joining the world in simply paying tribute to the late Queen of Country Music, who died Tuesday, the former child actor and one-time star of NYPD Blue criticized Parton's support for transgender rights and the COVID vaccine.

"I didn't agree with her advocating for Transgender & Covid Vaccine support… but loved her anyway. Thank you for choosing me Dolly to be your Movie Daddy."

Schroder, 56, played her father, Robert Lee Parton, in two TV movies about growing up poor in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee: Dolly Parton’s Coat of Many Colors in 2015 and the 2016 sequel, Dolly Parton’s Christmas of Many Colors: Circle of Love.

A flood of fans joined celebrities Boy George, Katie Couric and the band Garbage in slamming the conservative-leaning actor for his conditional and politicized post on both Instagram and Threads.

“Oh shut up,” replied Boy George on Threads.

The band fronted by nonbinary lead singer Shirley Manson, Garbage, also used its official account to tell the star, “Fuck off Ricky Schroeder.”

One Instagram user compared Schroder to President Donald Trump: “Just when I thought there was no one lower than our current president, you just took the cake. How can anything say anything tacky about Dolly? One of the most loving people ever. Something you could use more of. You’re in my prayers, Ricky.”

Another replied, “Imagine being the first (and probably only) person in the whole world to post something negative about Dolly. NOT COOL.”

“In a world full of Rickys, be a Dolly,” wrote one commenter, as another noted: “If your condolences or apologies are conditional with a ‘but….’, they are not sincere.”

Another Instagram user also had advice for Schroder: “Wow… you should have said nothing.” Actor Jay Huguley quoted Schroder's choice of words and questioned his sincerity: “‘I loved her anyway’ what a strange tribute. Good Lord.”

Couric replied to his post on Threads with just one word: "Ick."

Threads user Steven Havre slammed Schroder as well: “Ricky, she just died. You could have honored her without using her death to remind everyone that you disapproved of her supporting trans people and vaccines,” Havre wrote. “What a shitty, self-centered tribute.”

“Thanks for reminding me that she’s a much better person than you’ll ever be,” added another person, summing up the feelings of many responding to his post.

Parton has been hailed as a hero to the LGBTQ+ community and considered queer people "family." She was especially supportive of trans people, including a trans man who worked as her chauffeur and assistant for 30 years, as Out reported.

Schroder is known for social media posts filled with conservative content, as Entertainment Tonight reported. He and his second wife, actress Julie Trammel, recently posted on Instagram a cartoon featuring leftist caricatures labeled the “demonic socialists of America.” One person in the cartoon image is seen holding a coffee cup that reads “GAY DUST” on the front.

Playing Parton's father a decade ago was the last role of Schroder's acting career, according to IMDB. He also played Detective Danny Sorenson in TV's NYPD Blue from 1998 to 2001. His other TV credits include Silver Spoons, 24, Strong Medicine, and Scrubs. Schroder appeared in the 1979 movie The Champ, The Earthling in 1980, and 2004's Black Cloud, as well as in several television commercials as a child actor.