At the turn of the century, I was working at Fox Sports, on Best Damn Sports Show Period.
Tom Arnold was hosting, with John Salley and Michael Irvin.
I built props for the show. Comedy sketches were written for guests, sometimes they landed, sometimes they didn’t.
One day, John Leguizamo was scheduled to appear. The writers pitched a bit involving a Mexican character in a sombrero talking about his fighting rooster.
He refused to do it.
Not because it didn’t work comedically, but because he claimed it was discriminatory toward his people. “His people.” I find it hilarious when a celebrity thinks he is the spokesperson for all people that look like him.
What people forget is this:
the sketch wasn’t canceled.
They simply had someone else do it. Another Latino man jumped at the chance.
And it was funny.
The show moved on. The audience laughed. No outrage. No harm. Just comedy doing what comedy does.
That moment stayed with me and every time I see John Leguizamo I think of that day.
Because comedy isn’t endorsement. It’s exaggeration. Satire. Discomfort. Refusing a joke on moral grounds while remaining in the comedy business isn’t courage, it’s selective outrage.
Fast forward to now, and he’s telling people: if you support Trump, don’t watch my movies.
That isn’t activism.
That’s ideological gatekeeping.
And let’s call it what it is,
weak grandstanding.
The weakest kind.
It costs nothing and risks nothing.
If an actor believes an entire group of people are morally unfit to watch his work, then consistency matters.
If it were up to me, I’d handle it the same way Fox did back then.
I would remove his voice from the animated films he’s performed in.
Replace the character with a different actor.
Re-record the dialogue.
Move on.
No canceling.
No speeches.
No drama.
Just consequences that align with the position he’s chosen.
Because you don’t get to profit from an audience you openly reject.
Art doesn’t belong to political purity tests.
And audiences aren’t obligated to bankroll contempt.
That’s not censorship.
That’s accountability.
c 2026 Chu The Cud
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Chu The Cud 