It happens every year.

The film and television industries hold their numerous galas and ceremonies meant to honor the previous year’s worthy artistic offerings. From the Golden Globes to the Academy Awards to the Emmys, the actors, writers, directors, and producers behind these works get dressed to the nines and attend the events in hopes of being awarded for their contributions to cinema and television. With that comes the now-common occurrence of these artists and entertainers delivering politically-motivated speeches when the opportunity presents itself.

And with that comes the flowing anger of a number of social media users.

There are Facebook timelines nationwide sprinkled with a number of complaints and, in some instances, vitriol over “who said what” at the latest event. Retweets of what a celebrity at the event uttered with the Twitter users own disparaging response. Statements of “Hollywood elites are out of touch” and “shut up and act” mentioned at water cooler meetings and at grocery store conversations. These acts of the “Monday Morning Critics” have existed for quite some time now. It isn’t something that surprises me, but it is something that makes me wonder: why?

Why do some people get so angered and annoyed by artists and entertainers making their opinion-fueled, political and ideological statements? Here are just a few of the reasons I have come across, along with my commentary on each.

“They’re paid to act/entertain, not spout out politics!”

True. Actors and actresses, along with athletes, professional wrestlers, and other entertainers, are paid to display their talents in their line of work. A studio or production company pays an actor to appear in an upcoming project. In that project, the actor/actress is to perform to the best of their ability for said company. That is what they are paid for. However, in the case of the Hollywood thespian, award shows are not a part of their signed contract. Ceremonies like the Screen Actors Guild Awards and the Academy Awards are considered “after hours” events. The awards shows are honoring filmmakers for their productions, but are not tied to the actual productions themselves. Therefore, those attending these galas are not currently at work. Moreover, these events come at the end of their previous works; the job is done and they are no longer contractually tied to it. Which means they are free to be themselves—including giving their own personal opinions.

“I wish they’d just shut up!”

I am sure you do, but that’s not going to happen. They have been awarded for their performance, and as with any awards event, no matter what the theme is, a speech is always expected by those receiving an award. It does not matter if it is Leonardo DiCaprio or the retiring office building manager John Johnson (no, I don’t know if John actually exists), someone is going to give a speech. So sorry, but no one is shutting up anytime soon.

“Hollywood-born elites are out of touch and shouldn’t tell us how to live!”

Sure, a number of them may be out of touch. I will not deny that, but let’s take a look at this term “Hollywood elites.” This may be a surprise to some, but the majority of people who are in Hollywood were not born and raised there. In fact, many of them lived outside the area until they struck cinematic gold. Brad Pitt is from the Ozarks. Daniel Day-Lewis was born in London. Meryl Streep is from New Jersey. Denzel Washington is from New York. Tom Hanks and Brie Larsen are from… okay, they are from California, but it’s Northern California so it’s still about a five or six-hour drive away.

The point is these are people from all walks of life, from all over the world, who became successful enough at their craft to be a part of Hollywood. They are not being created in test tubes outside Burbank—or are they?… No, they are not.

“Hollywood stars are way too liberal!”

Sure, there are a few conservative stars like Tim Allen, but for the most part, the ideologies of filmmakers and entertainers in Hollywood tend to skew to the left. This should not come as a surprise though. If one were to think back to the days of high school, one would recall the number of groups, or cliques, that existed within a student body. There were the jocks, preps, cheer, goths, nerds, and many others. One of those groups was the theatre club. And in the history of high schools, when was theatre club ever known for thinking or acting the same as everyone else? As a former youth athlete-turned-high school theatre kid, take my word for it—we thought differently than others.

It should come as no surprise that the “grown-up” theatre club would continue to think differently than some everyday citizens.

And maybe that’s just it. Maybe some in our society feel that if they enjoy the work of an actor or entertainer, that entertainer must also share their same opinions on politics. It certainly makes sense in the case of certain media networks—especially one that criticizes the likes of Lebron James and Leonardo DiCaprio, but reveres the likes of Jon Voight and Ted Nugent. Some individuals cannot consider being a fan of an artist’s work if said artist dares to have a different viewpoint—and chooses to be vocal about it. Right after this year’s Golden Globes, many on the right began praising host Ricky Gervais for “taking it to those Hollywood liberal elites.”  I am curious how long it will take for them to realize that Gervais is in fact a full-blown, liberal atheist who is simply continuing with his brand of humor?

In this writer’s case, there is a difference between supporting an artist’s work and supporting an artist’s viewpoint. Many years ago, when I was on the other side of the political isle, I was still a fan of not only film, but the awards shows that honored the film industry. Since the late-’90s, I never missed a broadcast, and during those broadcasts, I never became perturbed by the speeches. I expected them as a common occurrence; a tradition of sorts dating back to Vanessa Redgrave in 1977, and Marlon Brando in 1973. My differing in politics with George Clooney did not distort the joy I had watching his performance in Ocean’s Eleven. My disagreements with stances taken by Sean Penn and Tim Robbins had no effect on my admiration for their amazing work in Mystic River, and believing they rightfully deserved the gold statues they were awarded.

So they say something politically-motivated. So what? Treat it the same way you would one of your friends on social media: engage them, avoid them, or scroll by—or in this case, change the channel. However, to demand they not be allowed to speak their opinions because you don’t agree with them sounds a bit… snowflakey. Get over the fact that the artists you watch may not agree with you. It’s okay. State your difference of opinion with them all you want, but stop being surprised when they do so and don’t take it so personally. It’s okay to not be on the same page as them. Just enjoy the work and let them have their spotlight. You are free to state yours wherever you like, if it makes you feel justified. Just stop complaining when it happens.

Finally, in regards to those who say celebrities are out of touch, their words don’t matter, and they should not be listened to: if that were true, then this nation wouldn’t have placed a celebrity in the Oval Office—twice!

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