ACTOR
LUKE MACFARLANE
When Canadian actor Luke Macfarlane came out earlier this year, we liked that he didn't sell the "exclusive" to People (can we please retire that overused "I'm Gay" headline?), but we like even more the abundant charm and humor he brings to his role as Scotty Wandell on ABC's Brothers & Sisters. A graduate of Juilliard, he caught an early break on FX's provocative Iraq drama, Over There, before coming to the attention of Brothers & Sisters creator—and 2007 Out 100 honoree—Jon Robin Baitz, who wasted no time in casting him as the husband of Matthew Rhys's Kevin Walker.One particularly powerful episode comes to mind—in which Kevin, under pressure from his boss, disinvites Scotty to dinner with a client as a way of advancing his law career. "You deserve to make partner, but you also deserve to be who you are," Scotty tells his husband. "You've been working pretty hard at that, too." You could say the same for Macfarlane, whose shining example could benefit from a few more imitators. Next up? "I'd love to play a villain," he says. "Edmund, the bastard son from King Lear, the first piece of Shakespeare I memorized for my audition to Juilliard."
