Comedian and voice actor Bobcat Goldthwait doesn’t want Disney to be seen as “hypocritical,” so he suggested the company remove his voice from an upcoming Disneyland attraction in response to “Guardians of the Galaxy” director James Gunn’s firing.
Goldthwait, who voiced the villain Pain in Disney’s 1997 animated film “Hercules,” wrote in an Instagram post on Monday that he’s also made jokes in the past that he’s embarrassed by, so Disney should disassociate with him as well and remove him from “World of Color – Villainous” — a not-yet-announced version of its World of Color attraction.
“You see here’s the deal, years ago I made a lot of sarcastically shocking and offensive jokes,” Goldthwait wrote in the post. “Many that I’m embarrassed about now, and I’d hate to make you guys look bad seeing that I’m openly critical of the president and his administration, and you seem to be taking your lead from some of his radical fringe supporters.”
He continued by suggesting Disney take a look at the past of some of the other actors and filmmakers they work with. He pinpointed James Woods, who also lent his voice to “Hercules” as god of the underworld Hades.
“I think James Woods may have recorded a voice for this new attraction, too. Why not check out some of his whacky past tweets?! They’re a hoot! For the record I do stand with survivors of sexual abuse and I was wondering if you guys are still making money off of your movie ‘Powder?’ Asking for a friend,” Goldthwait wrote.
“Powder,” was a 1995 fantasy drama directed by Victor Salva. The film’s release was plagued by Salva’s history as a convicted sex offender.
Disney fired Gunn from the “Guardians of the Galaxy” franchise last week after tweet’s the filmmaker wrote as much as a decade ago resurfaced. In the tweets Gunn joked about rape and pedophilia. Gunn later apologized for the tweets.
Since his firing, a number of actors and filmmakers, including cast members on “Guardians of the Galaxy,” have come to Gunn’s defense.
Goldthwait said of Gunn in his post: “I love @jamesgunn. He’s a loyal friend, super talented, passionate and kind.”