The “Full House” alum-turned-Hallmark Channel’s Queen of Christmas announced a partnership with the Great American Family as its chief creative officer ahead of upcoming holiday film “A Christmas…Present.” Bure slammed Hallmark for becoming too woke in recent years, namely with an upcoming LGBTQ Christmas love story. “It basically is a completely different network than when I started because of the change of leadership,” Bure recently told The Wall Street Journal. “I knew that the people behind Great American Family were Christians that love the Lord and wanted to promote faith programming and good family entertainment.” Bure added, “I think that Great American Family will keep traditional marriage at the core.”

The actress’ comments have drawn backlash from Bure’s past “Full House” co-star Jodie Sweetin, who commented on queer “Dance Moms” breakout JoJo Siwa’s social media post that called Bure’s homophobic intentions “rude and hurtful to a whole community of people.” Related No Film Studio Had ‘Sufficient’ LGBTQ Representation in 2021, GLAAD Report Finds IMDb Will Allow Industry Professionals to Remove Age and Birth Names Related 51 Directors’ Favorite Horror Movies: Bong Joon Ho, Quentin Tarantino, Guillermo del Toro, and More Martin Scorsese’s Favorite Movies: 53 Films the Director Wants You to See
Sweetin commented, “You know I love you.” GLAAD, the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, also issued a statement calling it “irresponsible” for Bure to “use tradition as a guise for exclusion” with the Great American Family film slate. “I’d love to have a conversation with Bure about my wife, our kids, and our family’s traditions,” GLAAD’s President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis said in a press statement (via Deadline). “Bure is out of sync with a growing majority of people of faith, including LGBTQ people of faith, who know that LGBTQ couples and families are deserving of love and visibility.” Ellis noted, “If GAF’s plan is to intentionally exclude stories about LGBTQ couples, then actors, advertisers, cable and streaming platforms, and production companies should take note and seriously consider whether they want to be associated with a network that holds exclusion as one of its values.” “One Tree Hill” star Hilarie Burton tweeted that “bigot” Bure’s comments echo former Hallmark executive Bill Abbott’s leadership over the Hallmark Channel before founding the Great American Family. “I called this shit out years ago when Abbott was at Hallmark. Glad they dumped him,” Burton said. “Being LGBTQ isn’t a ‘trend.’ That guy and his network are disgusting. You too Candy. There is nothing untraditional about same-sex couples.” Burton continued, “I don’t remember Jesus liking hypocrites like Candy. But sure. Make your money, honey. You ride that prejudice wave all the way to the bank.” Burton, who starred in three Hallmark films, claimed the network refused to have diverse casting, interracial lead couples, or LGBTQ characters. The Hallmark Channel also infamously pulled a Zola ad featuring a lesbian couple kissing after a petition led by conservative organization One Million Moms called for its removal.

“We are not allowed to accept creatives that are deemed controversial,” an account representative for Hallmark responded in 2019. Sign Up: Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.