Why Mark Wahlberg Is Optimistic About the Country's Future Under Trump

— -- Unlike a lot of folks in Hollywood, Mark Wahlberg is keeping a positive attitude about the fate of the nation under a Donald Trump presidency.

"Being the positive person that I am, I have to hope so," Wahlberg told E! News. "I have to remain optimistic that the future will get better."

Wahlberg, who stars in director Peter Berg's new film "Patriots Day," about the Boston Marathon bombings, credits his Catholic faith for his optimism.

"Peter and I have had endless conversations about this," the 45-year-old actor said about Berg. "I think he's always convinced I'm trying to convert him to Catholicism, which I'm not, but life is short. If we live to be 100, it's still a short amount of time. I want to live forever. I want to be with my loved ones forever and my faith allows me to deal with loss, disappointment, failure, all of those things, sickness. It reminds me that things can always be worse and how lucky I am, how blessed I am, how fortunate I am and I want to encourage people to have the ability to look at things in a positive way."

That includes explaining terrorism -- the subject of his latest film -- to his four children, Ella, 13, Michael, 10, Brendan, 8, and Grace, 6.

"My oldest kids want to see the movie," said Wahlberg, who plays a police officer on duty at the marathon finish line when the bombs went off.

"I think the oldest two are ready for it. This is the reality of the world that we live in and I think it's important for them to understand that but I think they'll take away what I'm taking away and what everybody else who sees the movie takes away -- that these things will happen, but we can't go and run and hide," he added. "We have to stand up and fight back and do that with love and I think that ultimately that will make them better and stronger as people."