James Gunn Doesn’t Get the ‘Why Chris Pratt Is the Worst Chris’ Meme: ‘Absolutely Infuriates Me’

James Gunn came to Chris Pratt’s defense amid the long-standing backlash against the actor for being the “worst” Hollywood Chris stacked against Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, and Chris Pine.

“It absolutely infuriates me,” Gunn told Men’s Health about the viral criticisms of Pratt. “Chris is unspeakably kind to people; he goes out of his way to help kids. He’s an especially loving father. And there’s a lot of stuff that people have literally just made up about him — about his politics, about who he is, about what he believes of other people, you know?”

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Pratt’s alleged involvement in Los Angeles-based Hillsong Church became the center of the anti-Pratt hate on social media, with transgender actor Elliot Page publicly calling out Pratt for being involved in a famously anti-LGBTQ+ organized religion.

“I never went to Hillsong. I’ve never actually been to Hillsong. I don’t know anyone from that church,” the “Thor: Love and Thunder” star now explained. Instead, Pratt clarified that he attends Zoe Church along with Justin and Hailey Bieber, another church that has come under fire for anti-gay beliefs. Zoe Church was founded by pastor Chad Veach, who executive produced the 2017 documentary “Heart of Man,” which conflated homosexuality with porn addiction and infidelity.

Back in 2019, Pratt did not disavow Hillsong Church publicly. Instead, the actor issued a statement following Page’s public comments, saying, “It has recently been suggested that I belong to a church which ‘hates a certain group of people’ and is ‘infamously anti-LGBTQ.’ Nothing could be further from the truth. I am a man who believes that everyone is entitled to love who they want free from the judgment of their fellow man.”

The statement continued, “My church is important to me but no church defines me or my life. I am not a spokesperson for any group of people. My values define who I am. We need less hate in this world, not more. I am a man who believes that everyone is entitled to love who they want free from the judgment of fellow man.”

Hillsong global pastor Brian Houston previously penned a statement released in August 2015 clarifying that the church “holds to traditional Christian thought on gay lifestyles and gay marriage” and that “God’s word is clear that marriage is between a man and a woman.”

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