Bryan Cranston Ridicules ‘Cancel Culture,’ Calls for More Forgiveness in 2021
By Movieguide® Staff
Hollywood star Bryan Cranston called for more forgiveness to start the new year amid the mob’s readiness to adopt a “cancel culture” mindset.
“We live in this ‘cancel culture’ of people erring and doing wrong — either on purpose or by accident — and there’s less forgiveness in our world,” Cranston told the Associated Press. “I think we’re unfortunately in a coarser environment. I think our societies have become harder and less understanding, less tolerant, less forgiving.”
The 64-year-old actor continued: “Where does forgiveness live in our society? Where can we accept someone’s behavior if they are contrite, if they are apologetic and take responsibility?”
Cranston proposed that forgiveness is a better answer to an apologetic offender than a mob mentality of cancel culture.
“I think we need to take a second look at that, exhale, and realize that asking forgiveness and receiving forgiveness are not weaknesses,” Cranston said, “but are human strengths.”
Christian author Jonathon Seidl noticed the actor’s comments and responded: “What Bryan Cranston says below about forgiveness is imperative. Watch it and spread it.”
Bryan Cranston hopes the new year brings changes to "cancel culture." pic.twitter.com/CBtYHlSmec
— AP Entertainment (@APEntertainment) January 5, 2021
Cranston is not the first Hollywood actor to call out the evil of “cancel culture.”
Recently, MR. BEAN star Rowan Atkinson also expressed his distaste of the mob mentality. Movieguide® reported:
In a recent interview, the British star accused social media users and platforms of needless polarization and fears that the mob’s readiness to “cancel” someone could result in a direct attack on freedom of speech.
“The problem we have online is that an algorithm decides what we want to see, which ends up creating a simplistic, binary view of society. It becomes a case of either you’re with us or against us. And if you’re against us, you deserve to be ‘canceled’,” Atkinson told Radio Times.
Atkinson continued: “It’s important that we’re exposed to a wide spectrum of opinion, but what we have now is the digital equivalent of the medieval mob roaming the streets looking for someone to burn. So it is scary for anyone who’s a victim of that mob and it fills me with fear about the future.”
Other stars such as John Cleese, Tim Allen, Jeff Foxworthy, and Ricky Gervais have all expressed that “cancel culture” hurts creativity in comedy and attacks free speech.