Actor Billy Bob Thornton Tells Joe Rogan Why Hollywood Shouldn’t Be Preaching Politics to the Public
Actor Billy Bob Thornton criticized Hollywood celebrities for using award shows as platforms to promote political agendas, arguing that many lack the knowledge to offer informed opinions. During a podcast with Joe Rogan, Thornton stated that celebrities should simply accept their awards and refrain from lecturing audiences, as the public is uninterested in actors’ political views. He emphasized that unless a person has thoroughly studied a topic, their political commentary may mislead the public. Thornton suggested that celebrities passionate about causes should act privately rather than using public ceremonies as a stage for activism. His views align with sentiments expressed by actress Jennifer Lawrence, who recently admitted that celebrity political statements have little influence on election outcomes. Thornton advocates for separating entertainment from political advocacy during events meant for celebration and enjoyment.
Actor Billy Bob Thornton said Hollywood celebrities should stop lecturing the public and pushing political agendas because many of them are too ignorant to have intelligent, informed opinions.
Thornton — who has won almost 30 film awards, including an Oscar — said when celebrities attend awards shows, they should just “accept your little award and f*** off,” instead of ranting about some random cause, because the public doesn’t really care what actors think about politics.
Thornton made the hilariously biting remark during a Nov. 7 podcast with Joe Rogan.
WARNING: The following post contains vulgar language that may offend some readers.
VIDEO: Actor Billy Bob Thornton tells Joe Rogan that no one wants to hear Hollywood preach about politics. pic.twitter.com/eHMk8FTu9h
— The Western Journal (@WesternJournalX) November 10, 2025
Thornton also warned that actors — who make a living by pretending — may not be knowledgeable enough to frivolously bloviate on a particular topic.
“[F]irst of all, unless you have really studied stuff and really know about a subject fully, who the hell would want to listen to an actor or a musician talk about politics? You know what I mean?” he said to Rogan.
“Are we supposed to follow this? If we are, what if they lead you down the wrong road?” he underscored.
Thornton said if someone wins an award at a Hollywood event, they shouldn’t preach on stage about some polarizing political cause because that’s an inappropriate forum for that.
“There is a time and place for that,” he said, per Parade. “Don’t go up there and talk about saving the badgers in Wisconsin or something, you know what I’m saying?”
“And people would argue and say, ‘Well, no, because I have a voice and because everybody knows me. This is a great platform for me to put this out there.’”
“Well, how about this? If you have a billion dollars and you want to save the badgers, f***ing save them,” he underscored.
In a nutshell, Thornton is saying that actors can engage in pompous virtue-signaling and self-aggrandizing posturing on their own time — not during an awards show, which the public watches to be entertained, not to be brainwashed and lectured at.
🏆 • oscars avg viewership over the years
2014 — 43.7M
2015 — 37.3M
2016 — 34.4M
2017 — 32.9M
2018 — 26.5M
2019 — 29.6M
2020 — 23.6M
2021 — 9.85M
2022 — 16.6M
2023 — 18.7M
2024 — 19.5M pic.twitter.com/3tYDrUbOGV— ؘ (@HitsAndCharts) March 1, 2025
Thornton’s astute approach is being mirrored by left-wing actress Jennifer Lawrence, who recently vowed to stop ranting against President Donald Trump because she finally realized that her anti-Trump harangues had no impact on election outcomes.
“[A]s we’ve learned, election after election, celebrities do not make a difference whatsoever on who people vote for,” Lawrence said earlier this month.
Because “common sense” is no longer common, it’s encouraging to see the scales falling from the eyes of shrill leftist harpies such as Lawrence.
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