{"id":24384,"date":"2023-03-21T10:07:24","date_gmt":"2023-03-21T14:07:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/?p=24384"},"modified":"2023-03-21T10:07:24","modified_gmt":"2023-03-21T14:07:24","slug":"rainn-wilson-calls-out-hollywoods-anti-christian-bias","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/2023\/03\/rainn-wilson-calls-out-hollywoods-anti-christian-bias.html","title":{"rendered":"Rainn Wilson Calls Out Hollywood&#8217;s &#8220;Anti-Christian Bias&#8221;"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_24390\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-24390\" style=\"width: 768px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/87\/2023\/03\/rainn-wilson2-credit-kathy-hutchins-shutterstock-scaled.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-24390\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/87\/2023\/03\/rainn-wilson2-credit-kathy-hutchins-shutterstock-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"768\" height=\"576\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-24390\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kathy Hutchins\/Shutterstock.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Actor Rainn Wilson called out anti-Christian bias in Hollywood after watching an episode of the HBO series \u201cThe Last of Us.\u201d The former \u201cThe Office\u201d actor used Twitter to discuss a recent show episode that featured a villainous character using Bible verses in what Wilson called a predictable formula.<\/p>\n<p>Wilson tweeted, \u201cI do think there is an anti-Christian bias in Hollywood. As soon as the David character in \u2018The Last of Us\u2019 started reading from the Bible, I knew that he was going to be a horrific villain. Could there be a Bible-reading preacher on a show who is actually loving and kind?\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">I do think there is an anti-Christian bias in Hollywood. As soon as the David character in \u201cThe Last of Us\u201d<br \/>\nstarted reading from the Bible I knew that he was going to be a horrific villain. Could there be a Bible-reading preacher on a show who is actually loving and kind?<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 RainnWilson (@rainnwilson) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/rainnwilson\/status\/1634657997317361665?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">March 11, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Last of Us\u201d is a post-apocalyptic show based on a video game of the same name. It features a group of cannibals led by what appeared to be a Christian preacher. The group defended their actions by quoting Bible verses, and a later scene shows the preacher trying to assault the series\u2019 protagonist Ellie, a young girl.<\/p>\n<p>Others agreed with Wilson\u2019s criticism, adding that this isn\u2019t the first example of Hollywood\u2019s anti-Christian bias. \u00a0LIBRE Initiative President Daniel Garza tweeted, \u201cDefamation of Christianity has become the most unoriginal and tired cliches in movie\/TV series storylines. Its prevalence is much more than a bias against an entire people; it is meant to undermine faith and position the secular-minded as only ones with altruistic intentions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>New Christendom Press CEO Eric Conn tweeted, \u201cGoes back to Mr. Collins in Austen\u2019s \u2018Pride &amp; Prejudice.\u2019 The preacher man is nearly always portrayed in a negative light. Also true of Hollywood today.\u201d Writer Sean Kernan added he tends to \u201clean left,\u201d but that \u201cThe Last of Us\u201d left him rolling his eyes. \u201cI lean left, but Last of Us still made me roll my eyes quite a few times with its Hollywood nonsense,\u201d he\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Seanjkernan\/status\/1634929259138674690\">tweeted<\/a>. \u201cHad to stop watching.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Others postulated perhaps Hollywood simply doesn\u2019t know how to portray Christians in a positive light. Another user named Isaac Goodwin said seeing true Christianity depicted on screen would benefit everyone. \u201cHollywood just doesn\u2019t know how to portray a genuine Christ follower,\u201d he\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/itsisaacgoodwin\/status\/1634733931571429377\">tweeted<\/a>. \u201cAny born-again Christian knows David was not a true Christian.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Others, though, took a different tone. Twitter account @socialistlyakwd\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/socialistlyakwd\/status\/1634798222697967616\">proclaimed<\/a>, \u201cChristians have used their religion to take away women\u2019s autonomy.\u201d She then points out believers are \u201cfighting to dismantle libraries and stop healthcare for trans people.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey invoke their god while they do it, but you\u2019d like us to feature a kindly preacher in a tv series,\u201d @socialistlyakwd\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/socialistlyakwd\/status\/1634798222697967616\">continued<\/a>. \u201cTo what end? This feels very tone-deaf to those of us who live in heavily red states.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Wilson is hardly the first person in Hollywood to notice how Christians are often framed and treated on TV and in movies. Lucas Black, a Christian actor who starred in the popular series \u201cNCIS: New Orleans\u201d before leaving the show in 2019, said working on the hit show was \u201cthe biggest eye-opener.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s a definite agenda to attack some of my beliefs and, you know, some of your beliefs as a Christian,\u201d Black told \u201cThe Prodigal Stories Podcast\u201d\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.faithwire.com\/2022\/10\/12\/theres-a-definite-agenda-to-attack-star-of-ncis-new-orleans-sounds-alarm-on-hollywood-hostility-toward-christianity\/\">of his experience<\/a>. \u201cI learned a lot about people\u2019s hearts, where they were coming from.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Actor Rainn Wilson called out anti-Christian bias in Hollywood after watching an episode of the HBO series \u201cThe Last of Us.\u201d The former \u201cThe Office\u201d actor used Twitter to discuss a recent show episode that featured a villainous character using Bible verses in what Wilson called a predictable formula. Wilson tweeted, \u201cI do think there&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":657,"featured_media":24390,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6,7],"tags":[1090,5454],"class_list":["post-24384","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-celebrities","category-entertainment","tag-rainn-wilson","tag-the-last-of-us"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Rainn Wilson Calls Out Hollywood&#039;s &quot;Anti-Christian Bias&quot;<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Actor Rainn Wilson took to Twitter to discuss Hollywood&#039;s &quot;anti-Christian bias&quot; after watching an episode of HBO&#039;s &quot;The Last of Us.&quot;\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, 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