Zachary Levi began this election season expressing mixed feelings about the options, ultimately endorsing anti-vaccine independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — and now that Kennedy’s backing Donald Trump, Levi has come out as a full-throated supporter of the Republican nominee. That includes going on the campaign trail with Kennedy as part of the “Reclaim America Tour,” introducing him and former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard at a Saturday rally where Levi explained his support for the former president.
After opening up underlining the idea of unity across parties, the “Shazam” star told the Dearborn, Michigan attendees, “I did want to just give you a little context why Shazam is standing here talking to you about these various things. I grew up in my family, Christian conservative — that was pretty much kind of the lane that we were in.”
“My parents were Kennedy Democrats that then turned into Reagan Republicans,” Levi shared. “And they taught me to have a healthy level of distrust for the government and a healthy level of distrust for industry that runs amok.”
Levi went on to note that he’s had trouble finding someone who fits what he wants in a politician.
“And for a long time, I was like, man, I really want to find a politician that represents all of the things that I want and I want to see in a presidential candidate,” Levi said. “And this year, I found Bobby Kennedy. And I thought this guy — this guy’s it. He’s the real deal.”
The actor endorsed Kennedy earlier in the election cycle, calling him “the best we’ve had in a long time.” While Levi cited a number of issues he supported Kennedy on, they are perhaps most closely aligned when it comes to anti-vaccine sentiment. Last year, Levi raised eyebrows when he tweeted that he agreed Covid manufacturer Pfizer is “a real danger to the world.”
Before Kennedy dropped out of the race, Levi was set to join him for events including a sunset cruise alongside other Hollywood stars including Alicia Silverstone, “The Sopranos” alum Drea de Matteo, former NBA star Metta World Peace and Kennedy’s wife Cheryl Hines.
But, Levi continued at Saturday’s rally, Kennedy is no longer an option this election cycle — so he’s throwing his weight behind Trump.
“In a perfect world, and whatever that would look like, perhaps I would have voted for Bobby,” Levi told the crowd. “But we don’t live in a perfect world. In fact, we live in a very broken one. We live in a country that has been hijacked by a lot of people who want to take this place way off the cliff. And we’re here to stop that, right?”
“We’re here to make sure that we are going to take back this country, we are going to make it great again, and we are going to make it healthy again,” Levi said, echoing the taglines of Trump and Kennedy. “And so I stand with Bobby, and I stand with Tulsi, and I stand with everyone else who is standing with President Trump. Because I do believe, that of the two choices we have, and we only have two, Donald Trump — President Trump — is the man that can get us there. And he’s going to get us there, because he’s going to have the backing, and the support, and the wisdom, and the knowledge, and the fight that exists in Robert Kennedy Jr. and former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard.”
Watch Levi’s endorsement here:
A number of observers were surprised with the longtime Hollywood star continuing on with Kennedy in supporting Trump. Entertainment journalist Dana Abercrombie argued, “Shazam 2 and every one of his movies afterward being a flop broke Zachary Levi’s brain.”
“Shazam! Fury of the Gods” failed to live up to the box office success of the original, with critics split almost evenly — it received a 49% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes — while receiving a warmer response from filmgoers, with an 86% positive rating on the site’s audience “Popcornmeter.”
His output since then has included a string of family films, including “Spy Kids: Armageddon,” “Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget” and what may be his biggest flop in his modern run as a star, this year’s “Harold and the Purple Crayon.” In the “Chicken Run” film, Levi voiced the character Mel Gibson voiced in the original film.
Abercrombie added, “Everyone should have seen this coming. He’s a Trump Christian who supports Jordan Peterson calling him a ‘deep thinker.’”
While similar thoughts were already shared by fans when Levi endorsed Kennedy, many were more chagrined by seeing the geek favorite endorse Trump. That included some making the comparison to an episode of the “Justice League Unlimited” animated series in which Shazam (then known as Captain Marvel) endorsed Lex Luthor for president.
Levi rose to prominence through his role on the cult NBC show “Chuck” and quickly became a beloved figure in the genre fan community, regularly appearing at San Diego’s Comic-Con International and hosting offsite charity events through his Nerd HQ organization. He also appeared in other projects appealing to a similar audience including two of the “Thor” films, “The Guild” and more, as well as projects including Disney’s “Tangled” and “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.”
Earlier in his talk, Levi opened up by asking those in the crowd to turn to the person next to them and say, “I’m really glad that you’re alive and I’m really glad that you’re here right now.”
“That’s called love, and that’s called unity, right? We’re here for unity, right? We’re here to make sure that we value every single person,” Levi added. “Every single person, whether you’re a Democrat, whether you’re a Republican, whether you’re a libertarian, an independent, every single one of us is a child of God. Every single one of us is deserving of being seen, and heard, and loved and valued.”
It’s a message that echoes that of Levi’s 2022 memoir, “Radical Love: Learning to Accept Yourself and Others.”
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