Great American Family star and TV Christmas movie regular Danica McKellar has some thoughts on former costar Neal Bledsoe's decision to leave Great American Family following Candace Cameron Bure's controversial comments.
In a recent interview with Fox News Digital, McKellar called Bledsoe a "wonderful person" and a "great actor" she has enjoyed working with "so much" before ultimately proclaiming she didn't see eye to eye with him on Bure's statements.
"He and I both share our love and support of [the] LGBT community, for sure," she said. "You know, I don't agree with his interpretation of her comments. I just didn't see them the same way."
Bure drew headlines when she discussed her move to Great American Family, making a statement that would ultimately end up ruffling more than a few feathers.
"My heart wants to tell stories that have more meaning and purpose and depth behind them," Bure said at the time. "I knew that the people behind Great American Family were Christians that love the Lord and wanted to promote faith programming and good family entertainment." She also noted that GAC, where she had moved, wouldn't feature same-sex couples in the same way the Hallmark Channel had begun doing ahead of her departure. These words have since attracted the ire of former Hallmark Channel star Hilarie Burton as well as a number of fans in the LGBTQIA+ community.
Bledsoe recently went public with his decision to exit the network, releasing a lengthy statement to Variety with his thoughts on Bure's stance.
"Everyone is entitled to their beliefs, and these are mine: the recent comments made by leadership at Great American Family are hurtful, wrong, and reflect an ideology that prioritizes judgment over love," Bledsoe wrote. "I was raised as a Christian, and believe in the essential message of love and forgiveness. That said, I could never forgive myself for continuing my relationship with a network that actively chooses to exclude the LGBTQIA+ community."
McKellar didn't quite see Bure's comments as damning as Bledsoe did. In the same Fox Digital interview, she defended Bure's words.
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"When she was talking about the portrayal of heterosexual couples in the movies, she started the sentence with 'I think,' which is not definitive, and she ended it with 'at its core,' which doesn't mean exclusively," McKellar said. "But I love [Bledsoe] to death and wish him well."
Bure later said in a statement posted to Instagram that as a "devoted Christian," she is "called to love all people" and loves "fiercely and indiscriminately" beyond what she shared about her departure from Hallmark Channel. Bledsoe has yet to comment on McKellar's viewpoint.
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