CEO Of Great American Family Says Candace Cameron Bure Does Not Speak For The Network After Anti-LGBTQ Remarks

Bill Abbott, the Chief Executive Officer of the media company, Great American Family, tried to distance the organization from the controversial opinions made by former Full House star Candace Cameron Bure, the network’s new chief content officer, after her anti-LGBTQ comments.

Back in November 2022, the actress gave an interview to The Wall Street Journal about her new position at the network. She said that due to the network’s focus on “traditional” marriage, viewers should not expect any LGBTQ plot lines in its movies.

Her comments in this interview were quickly denounced by other celebrities like JoJo Siwa and groups that support LGBTQ rights.

Abbott had no other choice but to speak up about Bure’s comments.

“We’re proud to have her here, and she works so well with the team alongside me, and we have a really talented and dedicated team that’s committed to high-quality faith and family content,” he told Variety.

“In terms of her personal views, it’s like the disclaimer you see at the end of a movie or a series that says, ‘The views reflected here are not necessarily those of the company,'” the executive said. “Candace has such a high profile that when she speaks, she’ll speak on a lot of topics, and she has a wonderful podcast that is fantastic. But when she speaks on that, she’s not speaking on behalf of Great American Media.”

“So when I talk about something, it’s very different, because I’m representing the company and only the company,” he continued. “When Candace talks about something, obviously she has a lot of other audiences and platforms.”

Abbott was also asked whether or not the company was planning on including same-sex couples in their films.

“I don’t think when we set out to do any type of movie we cast it first,” he said. “The first thing we think about is a great story line or great characters or an emotional journey. We’re not seeking to do anything or not do anything, and we take every day as it comes. This business is so challenged across the entire industry right now — with the streaming model and with the linear decline and all the other pieces — that we’re just looking to celebrate great stories.”

“We don’t have an agenda either way,” he noted. “It’s not in the faith-and-family playbook to have agendas that are either pro or anti. We want to entertain and inspire and be uplifting and consistently provide an experience that is high quality — that is our most important objective.”

Bure is the sister of actor Kirk Cameron, also known for his outspoken Christian views.

In 2018, Kirk told uInterview exclusively about his documentary Connect, which focused on the dangers of social media.

“I was inspired by the concern I have for my kids. My wife and I… share the universal concern that parents have about the effect that social media and too much technology is having on our kids,” Cameron explained on his inspiration for the film. “I think that the founding Facebook president said it well, when he said, ‘God only knows what this thing we’ve created is doing to our children’s brains.’”