Dennis Quaid Fires Back At ‘Cancel Culture Media’ Over Accusations His Fauci PSA Was Political

Hollywood star Dennis Quaid lashed out at “cancel culture” and the media after a Politico article sparked accusations of campaigning for Trump and political motivations behind a PSA-driven interview with Dr. Anthony Fauci a few weeks ago.

The article centered around an upcoming ad campaign by the health department that will reportedly feature content from two recent public health education initiatives. One is Quaid’s interview with Fauci and another is singer CeCe Winans’ interview with the Surgeon General about masks.

Cancel Culture Attacks Dennis Quaid Over Fauci Interview

News of the ad campaign that might shed light on America’s coronavirus response drew an outcry.

The backlash against Quaid for his interview was swift and unforgiving. So the 66-year-old actor addressed it head-on on Saturday in an Instagram video that he captioned, “NO GOOD DEED GOES UNPOLITICIZED.”

Quaid was given the opportunity to interview Fauci, who is the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, after the actor filmed a PSA to raise awareness about COVID-19.

“I have to say right now I am feeling some outrage and a lot of disappointment about a PSA and interview that I did with Dr. Anthony Fauci a few weeks ago,” Quaid said in the video.

“It is being used by the cancel culture media that I was doing a campaign ad and endorsement of Donald Trump and that I was paid handsomely for this by diverted CDC funds. Nothing could be further from the truth.”

What Actually Happened 

Quaid went on to explain what actually happened:

“I did a PSA for Dr. Anthony Fauci, and he was kind enough to grant me an interview as well. And the interview and PSA were about raising awareness of COVID-19 and what we can still do to prevent lives being lost by this terrible, terrible virus. It was about the importance of wearing a mask and social distancing.

It was in no way political, and in fact, Dr. Fauci and I talked about it beforehand that it was not to be political. In fact, Dr. Anthony Fauci and I both talked about it before that it was not to be political, as the virus is not political.”

Related: Why Actor Dennis Quaid Calls Coronavirus Our Generation’s “World War II Moment”

Quaid said he took no payment for the PSA and the interview before reiterating that his discussion with Dr. Fauci was in no way meant to be political. 

“I was not paid one penny for doing this interview and neither was Dr. Anthony Fauci,” Quaid said. “I am really disappointed that some people who call themselves legitimate reporters don’t do their homework. If you would like to listen to my entire conversation with Dr. Anthony Fauci you can, it’s on my podcast The Dennissance Podcast on Audio Up. Whoever wrote this story obviously didn’t listen to the interview.” 

Dennis Quaid Praises Donald Trump

While many other actors in Hollywood have been blaming Trump for American coronavirus deaths, in the past Quaid has praised the president for how he has handled this unprecedented situation.

“I think Trump, no matter what anybody thinks of him, is doing a good job at trying to get these states — and all of the American people — what they need, and also trying to hold our economy together and be prepared for when this is all over,” Quaid told the Daily Beast in April. 

It’s sad that we live in a world where everything is so heavily politicized.

Quaid is right that the coronavirus should not be political. However, it has been weaponized by both sides to the point that a public figure is hit with backlash simply for mentioning it, even in an apolitical PSA. 

Read next: New Dennis Quaid Movie Explores Dogs’ Ability To Detect Cancer