Andrew Scott praises queer ‘resilience’ and ‘friendship’ in Out100 speech

This story originally appeared on Out.Andrew Scott received the Icon of the Year Award at the 2026 Out100 gala.Out's November/December cover star, who has received critical acclaim for his portrayal as Ian Charleson in the upcoming film Elsinore, paid homage to the late gay actor in his acceptance speech. He also praised the entertainer's legacy, which he saw reflected in this year's Out100.“We wanted to not fetishize his death but celebrate his life,” Scott said. “He had an extraordinary sense of humor. He was charming and beautifully alive and extraordinary resilient and this story is about, finding joy in the face of fear, which we still face today.”Scott also observed that Elsinore was a story about queer friendship, which has become more personally important to him over the years. “Of course I love my straight friends,” he joked, “but as I move through life, I feel like the friendships and the connections that I've made with queer people that just mean more and more and more and more to me.”“There are just so many innumerable things that I love about being born gay, but my kinship with this ever strengthening community is chief among them,” he continued.Scott concluded his remarks with a moving reflection on what the Out100 honor meant to him. “There’s no doubt that when I was growing up in Dublin in the 1990s, I would have been scared,” he said, adding, “I would have been scared to even glance at a magazine cover in a newsstand there out of fear and shame, so it really does feel like a miracle to be here with you.”The actor was introduced by Lisa Kudrow, who he shared scenes with The Comeback season 3. Kudrow praised Scott for "the performance of a lifetime" in Elsinore as well as his "courage and pride" as an out actor and public figure.The 2026 Out100, presented by Lexus, brought together some of the year's most notable LGBTQ+ changemakers. In addition to Kudrow and Scott, Lily Tomlin and Stella Parton also took the stage to hon