Actor Neal Bledsoe is leaving GAC Media following comments from a prominent executive at the network, Candace Cameron Bure, on “traditional marriage.”
“The phrase ‘traditional marriage’ is as odious as it is baffling. Not simply wrong in its morality, it’s also a moot point, when you consider that most romantic movies don’t feature married couples at all, nor even weddings, but simply people meeting and falling in love,” he said in a Monday statement.
“I could never forgive myself for continuing my relationship with a network that actively chooses to exclude the LGBTQIA+ community,” the actor continued.
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Bledsoe, who starred in the network’s Christmas at the Drive-In alongside Danica McKellar, explained that “my life wouldn’t be where it is today without the love, support, and guidance of the LGBTQIA+ community.”
“And now, if I cannot stand up for that community in their time of need, my debt to them means nothing. So, I want to be very clear: my support for the LGBTQIA+ community is unconditional — nothing is worth my silence or their ability to live and love freely in a world that we are lucky enough to share with them,” he added.
He further claimed that his departure is the reason he has been “unusually silent” rather than promoting Christmas movies. “I cannot continue with business as usual. I cannot take comfort from, nor will I give refuge to, those who excuse exclusion and promote division in any way, shape, or form,” Bledsoe said.
He made the point of noting that his leaving the network has nothing to do with freedom of speech or religion. “This is about someone in an executive position speaking about deliberate exclusion on behalf of an entire network,” Bledsoe explained.
Neither Bure nor GAC responded to the Washington Examiner’s requests for comment.
Last month, Bure received a wave of backlash for saying, “I think that Great American Family will keep traditional marriage at the core” in an interview.
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Her comments were condemned by several others in the industry, prompting the actress to make a statement on Instagram. In a five-page post, she insisted that any offense was unintentional. In a message to “those who hate what I value,” Bure delivered a simple message: “I love you.”
