6 Celebrities Who Left Faith for Fame

Celebrities have more power than we often give them credit for—including in the realm of religion and spirituality.

We look up to these men and women—their glamour gives them an otherworldly quality that has many of us regarding them as something more than human. We want to dress like them, speak like them, act like them, and live like them.

And for better or for worse, we often emulate their faith, as well.

One of the drawbacks of fame and wealth, unexpectedly, is the sheer amount of lifestyle choices they bequeath. When you can do absolutely anything, it’s all the more difficult to make the hard choices, to live a faith-based life that stays within the boundaries laid out by God.

Because of this, few celebrities maintain their faith after their rise to fame. And their path affects others.

But simply being aware of the influence celebrities have on our faith can help make our own stronger—we become aware of social pressures we might never have considered.

In that spirit, let’s take a look at 7 celebrities who left their Christian faith behind.

Brad Pitt

Helga Esteb Shutterstock

Pitt, a member of the Hollywood elite, has publicly acknowledged his atheism, and lives a life free of religious influence. But this wasn’t always the case.

He was raised by Baptist parents, who instilled their faith-based values into him at an early age, teaching him and his siblings valuable life lessons about integrity that, Pitt says, still inform his life and actions today.

In 2007, Pitt admitted to a “crisis of faith” in high school during an interview with Parade Magazine. “I’d go to Christian revivals and be moved by the Holy Spirit,” Pitt said, “And I’d go to rock concerts and feel the same fervor. Then I’d be told, ‘That’s the devil’s music! Don’t partake in that! I wanted to experience things religion said not to experience.’

But the future celebrity continued to hold onto some vestiges of his faith through college, and it wasn’t until adulthood that the last remnants slipped away. Finding religion to be “stifling,” Pitt became an atheist.

It is interesting to note, however, that Pitt also sees the good in religion, admitting that “There’s a comfort there, a crash pad.” Even more hopeful are his comments about his film, “Tree of Life”. In an interview about the film, Pitt admits that, while he doesn’t think there’s peace to be found in religion, there may be peace to be found in the acceptance of the unknown—that there could be an unexplained power.

Perhaps these last words hold the seeds to his eventual redemption.

Kevin Bacon

Gage Skidmore / Flickr.com

Despite being raised Catholic, Kevin Bacon today identifies as an atheist.

Bacon, one of six children raised by an elementary school teacher and an architect, has publicly said that he “doesn’t believe in God.” However, he has also made it clear that he is not “anti-religion.” Instead, he has actively pushed for a greater separation between church and state in America.

His band, ‘The Bacon Brothers,’ which he formed with his older brother, Michael Bacon, have performed at events like ‘First Freedom First’ which specifically advocate the separation of church and state. Bacon has been married since 1988 to actress Kyra Sedgwick, who identifies herself as Jewish both religiously and culturally. The couple have two children.

Gabriel Byrne

Ian Smith/Flickr

The Dublin actor, Gabriel Byrne, who trained in a seminary for five years, now finds Christianity, and the Catholic Church, in particular, a “force of evil” in the world.

Although this view is unfortunate, Byrne has a very good reason to feel this way. At age 11, he was sexually abused by a pair of Christian brothers. And then, again, while in England, training to be a priest, he was sexually abused by a member of the clergy there.

After, Byrne descended into alcoholism and depression, deeply hurt over the abuses he endured. And, in the end, he forsook Christianity—more than that, he has branded it an evil, an oppressive force on society, comparing the Catholic Church to the Nazi party.

He laments the hold the Catholic Church has on his home country, Ireland, and continually speaks out against it, and its cultural footholds.

In Byrne, we see the tragedy that happens when we allow corruption to go unchecked within the church. One can hardly blame him for his feelings, but we can hope that, one day, he will get to see the true nature and goodness that Christianity has such potential to propagate.

Daniel Radcliffe

Born to a Jewish mother and Protestant father, the star of “Harry Potter” and 12th richest person in the UK, is anything but religious.

Radcliffe identifies his upbringing as Jewish, but admits that’s as far as it goes, saying “I’m very proud of being Jewish. It means I have a good work ethic, and you get Jewish humor and you’re allowed to tell Jewish jokes.”

Today, Radcliffe describes himself as a “militant atheist,” fighting against the intrusion of religion in politics. He expresses an intense admiration for Richard Dawkins, outspoken atheist and author of “The God Delusion,” soaking up anything that Dawkins puts out.

Despite this, Radcliffe is still extremely close to his family, saying that they keep him grounded—the issue of religion does not come between them. The star is also an activist, supporting many charities for children, suicide prevention programs, and the fight against AIDS.

Although he is no longer religious, Radcliffe does use his fame and riches for good—perhaps there is hope that, someday, his good intentions will lead him toward the ultimate source of goodness—God.

Kathy Griffin

Few celebrities have rejected God with as much vehemence as actress Kathy Griffin.

At the 2007 Emmy Awards ceremony, Griffin, in her acceptance speech, said, “A lot of people come up here and thank Jesus for this award. I want you to know that no one had less to do with this award than Jesus. Suck it, Jesus! This award is my God now!”

Aside from denying God as the source of her talent, Griffin insulted Christians everywhere, to the extent that her comments were edited out of the televised Emmy broadcast.

Griffin’s departure from Christianity actually occurred before she attained her celebrity status. Once a Roman Catholic, she fell away during her time in a Catholic high school, where she says that she witnessed cruelty directed toward students. She’s never looked back.

In an interview with Outsmart, Griffin spoke of the Catholic Church as “stupid,” later saying that she hoped that people were offended by her Emmy Awards comments.

Her comments came back to haunt her, however, when public backlash caused Griffin’s celebrity status to sink.

Bruce Willis

Dennis Makarenko/Shutterstock

Bruce Willis, action star extraordinaire, grew up a Lutheran, attending the Missouri Synod Lutheran Church. Although lately, Willis has been openly hostile toward organized religion, and is on many celebrity atheist lists.

Of religion, Willis has been quoted as saying, “Organized religions in general, in my opinion, are dying forms. They were all very important when we didn’t know why the sun moved, why weather changed, why hurricanes occurred, or volcanoes happened. Modern religion is the end trail of modern mythology.”

While this would seem that Willis takes Christianity as mere myth, the actor’s other statements seem to point to a man who still wonders—statements like “I believe there are a lot of things in the world that happen that are inexplicable but still happen. And I accept that, and that to me is part of what I call God.”

Like others, it seems that Willis has been burned by organized religion, is on a spiritual journey, and has yet to arrive at a solid destination.

Hugh Laurie

Bukley/Shutterstock

Hugh Laurie, the British actor who gave us the caustic, yet lovable genius, Dr. House, was exposed to Christianity at a young age, and raised in a strict Presbyterian family.

Today, however, Laurie is an atheist, and seems to point toward the fear and guilt that are often associated with Christianity as the reasons why he parted ways with God.

Laurie says, of Christianity, “I don’t believe in God, but I have this idea that if there were a God, or destiny of some kind looking down on us, that if he saw you taking anything for granted he’d take it away. So he’ll be like: ‘You think this is going pretty well?’ Then he’ll go and send down some big disaster.”

Laurie sees the God of Christianity as a malevolent being who imposes guilt upon his servants and takes away that which makes them happy—a seemingly common theme amongst celebrities. This is very different from the actual nature of God—a loving father who guides His children.

Shutterstock.com

The commonalities between these celebrities’ stories are many—we see men and women who feel that Christianity is a destructive force, impeding society’s progress. We see people who’ve felt too guilted and stifled to remain religious.

All of these views come from a warped idea of who God really is. This isn’t merely a problem of wealth, although wealth and fame do allow for more opportunity to step away from the Christian community with little repercussion.

If and when success and wealth strike us, we need to be intentional about remembering who God really is—just because our view is widened, and we’re better able to see the unfortunate circumstances of the world, doesn’t mean that God has changed.

Tim Allen's Journey From Home Improvement to a Man of Faith

The comedian openly shares his faith. Read next feature >