Kirk Cameron's Strong Religious Values: Did it Hurt His Career

[ahafan02]

I would just like to add some perspectives on this whole topic:


I have no issues with christians or Kirk's christianity. However, there is a thing called respect. If you look down on someone, make them feel bad or just ignore them, I have a problem with that. Kirk's behaviour on the set of Growing Pains was atrocious and take it from me, my dad was a camera operator on the set. One time, my father told me, Kirk brought in 20 bibles, gave them to various crew members and told them if they didn't read it and discuss it with him, then they WERE NOT allowed to talk to him anymore. This is very EXTREME behaviour on anyone. Kirk isolated himself from the cast and crew and made it very clear how he felt about certain people. It is one thing to have firm beliefs but when you try to impose them on other people, or you go out of your way to make them feel unwelcome, then I have a problem. Kirk was mean spirited, judgmental and (downright) cruel to some people on the set and if there is such a thing called karma, his career nosedived. I have no idea what he's like now, hopefully he has learned from mistakes and no longer acts like he's better than most people. I find it sad that some people on here find excuses for him or make comments like "he'll be a star in heaven"..perhaps but would Jesus EVER treat other human beings like Kirk did? As far as Julie goes, he did get her fired. He was adamant about not appearing in any scenes with her, refusing to even leave his dressing room until they did. What were the producers to do? Would people keep watching this show without Kirk? Whether the producers admit it or not, it's all water under the bridge.

This is not intended as an argument.

[GrowingPainsFan]

Kirk used to be an atheist when he was younger. He said his family wasnt into church and that he had a girl friend who took him to church when he was 17 and he found God.

Also I think he has matured since the whole falling out with the cast. I just watched the Smores N More reunion on the Growing Pains DVD set and he didnt talk about religion at all. Also in the recent Larry King reunion show he said that he doesnt consider himself 'religious'

Here is an excerpt from the transcript of the show

KING: You're very religious right?

CAMERON: No, I'm not religious. I'm a Christian but I'm not big on religion but I do produce a television program right now called "The Way of the Master" and that basically is -- it's a Christian reality program where we kind of unmask the -- the hypocrisy of a lot of modern religion that you see today.

And then we go out on the streets and confront people with what is it that you believe about stuff like heaven and hell and God and how to make peace with God? And then we talk with them about how they can find eternal life.

He will always be 'Mike' to me!

[ABlairican Pie]

Originally Posted by GrowingPainsFan

Kirk used to be an atheist when he was younger. He said his family wasnt into church and that he had a girl friend who took him to church when he was 17 and he found God.

Also I think he has matured since the whole falling out with the cast. I just watched the Smores N More reunion on the Growing Pains DVD set and he didnt talk about religion at all. Also in the recent Larry King reunion show he said that he doesnt consider himself 'religious'

Here is an excerpt from the transcript of the show

KING: You're very religious right?

CAMERON: No, I'm not religious. I'm a Christian but I'm not big on religion but I do produce a television program right now called "The Way of the Master" and that basically is -- it's a Christian reality program where we kind of unmask the -- the hypocrisy of a lot of modern religion that you see today.

And then we go out on the streets and confront people with what is it that you believe about stuff like heaven and hell and God and how to make peace with God? And then we talk with them about how they can find eternal life.

He will always be 'Mike' to me!

I know how many born-again Christians say they're not "religious", but they don't mean it in the way a non-churched Saturday night *pagan* weekend warrior would mean it. Many Christians like to say that Christianity is not a religion, but a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. They say they're not about external rules, not about polishing dusty haloes in church, doing the holier-than-thou bit, but when you really get them to a certain point, they will insist that it is about many cultural do's-and-don'ts such as what your hair length is, whether you smoke or drink, go to movies, play cards, buy lotto tickets, who did you vote for, what kind of music you listen to and all that--THEN they start saying these are red-letter issues as to what your faith is based on and whether or not God will bless you if you participate in them. Then when a non-Christian rags on these religious, legalistic deals and blows off what it (supposedly) means to be "born again" under these conditions, a Christian will get mad and treat that person like they're a "God-hater" or something like that.

Personally, as a Christian, if I were on the show and my role required to kiss Julie McCullough, I would!!!!!!! Jesus hung with the "sinners", right? Besides, she was hot!!!

[gidgetgrape]

I prefer to think that Kirk's strong religious values shifted his career. He could have stayed on the path, but he decided to go in another direction. Which direction is the right one? It depends on your point of view.

[anakin]

Kirk's Faith in Christ helped alter his career focus from acting to teaching. He's now a very successful servant of God and his ministry will be long remembered after his success in Growing Pains and movies fades away.

*As for his supposed actions during the later years of Growing Pains. I wasn't there, so I can't judge his alledged actions. I can say from experience though, that when someone gives their heart and life to Jesus, they are filled with such a passion for God, but it's sometimes hard to express it. It's like when a baby first realizes they can walk. They fall alot. They are eager to walk and keep trying, but they often make mistakes as they go.
Kirk is a much more mature Christian today and I'm sure he's much different, like we all are. Each day is an opportunity to grow in love.

[Scoobiedoo30]

I belive Kirk Cameron has a show om TBN but I am not sure what time The Show airs

[bttf4444]

Originally Posted by barwars

Kirk's strong religious values played a very large role in hurting his career.

Look at him side by side with Michael J. Fox, who starred in a similar sitcom at the same time.
Fox became one of the biggest names in Hollywood.
Kirk Cameron?? Ohh, he's that kid from Growing Pains.

Originally Posted by RWCTV

I think that Matthew 16:26 sums it up.

For what is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

As a fan of Michael J Fox, I feel that I should say something in his defense. He has always been a very sweet and kind person. In fact, he was even the one to warn Kirk Cameron to not let fame get to his head. I don't know too much about MJF's beliefs - but, from what I understand, he does have a strong faith in God - but he's not into all the dogmas, rituals, and creeds of organized religion. Anyway, let's not forget that MJF has Parkinson's disease, now - so not everything is going fine for him. He still maintains a very positive attitude towards life, though.

[ddd33323456]

Kirk shouldnt of become a christion until after growing pains

[ABlairican Pie]

Originally Posted by ddd33323456

Kirk shouldnt of become a christion until after growing pains

So what if the show went on for over ten seasons? How does one "wait" to make personal decisions about one's faith? As much as I am very put off as to how he practiced his faith and mistreated others, I am not against his becoming a Christian in the first place. When you are confronted by certain things in regards to belief and how it may affect your life, you have to strike while the iron is hot, because you may never have that desire later on. Becoming a Christian is not a "career choice", it's a matter of committing yourself to something greater than yourself. People gave Jesus excuses as to why they would "wait" before becoming His disciples. The excuses weren't good enough for Him. It just only showed Him
where they really at.

[TMC]

Would he have become a big star if he hadn't gone crazy?

[Ron Ron]

Too bad Kirk was such a *****…lol…I had a huge crush on him too during his GP years. He still looks mighty hot. Some guy needs to tap him so he knows how it really feels instead of hating…lol

[TMC]

Originally Posted by Ron Ron

Too bad Kirk was such a *****…lol…I had a huge crush on him too during his GP years. He still looks mighty hot. Some guy needs to tap him so he knows how it really feels instead of hating…lol

I think a big part of Kirk's problem in regards to his beliefs is that he lacks self-awareness. When his film Saving Christmas got horrible review after horrible review, he blamed it all on "haters and atheists" and not that the movie itself just plain sucked, period.

[jets4life]

Kurt Cameron's religious views destroyed his career, and blacklisted him from Hollywood. I can understand him finding God, but the sad thing about Cameron, is that he either never read about what Jesus Christ taught, or disregarded it completely. People who follow teachings of Christ do not try to get their coworkers kicked off the show for past sins years ago. Something that Kirk Cameron would ahve known, if he bothered to read the New Testament.

So yes, Cameron was not well liked in Hollywood. It had nothing to do with being a Christian, but shoving down his version of Christianity on everyone else.

[TMC]

Originally Posted by jets4life

Kurt Cameron's religious views destroyed his career, and blacklisted him from Hollywood. I can understand him finding God, but the sad thing about Cameron, is that he either never read about what Jesus Christ taught, or disregarded it completely. People who follow teachings of Christ do not try to get their coworkers kicked off the show for past sins years ago. Something that Kirk Cameron would ahve known, if he bothered to read the New Testament.

So yes, Cameron was not well liked in Hollywood. It had nothing to do with being a Christian, but shoving down his version of Christianity on everyone else.

http://www.nickiswift.com/77659/what...-kirk-cameron/

Thanks to the success of the ABC sitcom Growing Pains, Kirk Cameron became a teen heartthrob. He even landed a Pepsi commercial during Super Bowl XXIV. But after seven seasons, Growing Pains was canceled in 1992. It was a blessing for Cameron, who was eager to chart a new path for his career and answer to a higher calling, even if he had to burn some bridges along the way. What happened to him after he left the limelight? Stay tuned.

He converted to Christianity

At the height of his fame, Cameron converted to Christianity and allegedly became an absolute nightmare to deal with on the set of Growing Pains. According to E! True Hollywood Story (via the Orlando Sentinel), Cameron wielded his star power to make sure the show portrayed themes and storylines that were in line with his new religious beliefs, and he wasn't afraid to go straight to network brass to get what he wanted. Several producers reportedly quit the show, and the ratings for Growing Pains plummeted in Season 7, prompting ABC to pull the plug.

By the time the smoke cleared, Cameron had alienated himself from the cast.*"I definitely kind of made an about-face, going toward another aspect of my life," he told the Los Angeles Times in 2000. "I shifted my focus from 100% on the show, to 100% on [my new life], and left 0% on the show—and even the friendships that were a part of that show."

He allegedly had an actress fired because she posed for Playboy

Atress Julie McCullough joined the cast of Growing Pains as nanny Julie Costello in 1989. Despite being cast as a love interest for Cameron's Mike Seaver, McCullough was written off the show by 1990. According to Hollywood legend, when Cameron found out the actress had posed for Playboy*in the past, he was*furious with producers. He allegedly went so far as to call them "pornographers."

Cameron has denied having McCullough fired, asserting she was never meant to have a long-term role in the show, reported*Us Weekly.*

There's also an uncorroborated internet rumor*that alleges Cameron had Friends star Matthew Perry terminated from Growing Pains because he believed Perry was "satan." While that sounds pretty far-fetched to us, Cameron's faith and his professional life were certainly on their way to becoming one and the same.

He won't kiss anyone but his wife

With McCullough gone, Cameron used his influence to have his real-life girlfriend, Chelsea Noble, cast as Seaver's new TV girlfriend, Kate McDonald. The two married in real life during a summer hiatus from Growing Pains, which reportedly drove a wedge between Cameron and his TV family, who was not invited to the wedding.*

To his credit, Cameron regretted the decision in later years, telling the*Los Angeles Times, "If I could go back, I think I could make decisions that were less inadvertently hurtful to the cast—like talking and explaining to them why I just wanted to have my family at my wedding."*

Cameron's relationship with Noble catalyzed another strict stipulation for the rest of Cameron's acting career. He would not kiss anyone but her. Even while filming Christian movies with other Christian actors, Cameron would reportedly make the cast and crew swap in his wife as a kissing double."

He tried another sitcom after Growing Pains

Despite the behind-the-scenes dramas on Growing Pains, Cameron managed to land a new sitcom, Kirk, on The WB. The family-friendly show featured an older brother raising his three younger siblings while chasing his dream of becoming a comic book artist. At the time, squeaky clean sitcoms were no longer the ratings draw they used to be, but The WB took a chance on Cameron, according to the Los Angeles Times.*

If none of this sounds familiar, it's probably because Kirk barely lasted two seasons and failed to make its mark on '90s television.*

He pivoted to only making Christian movies

With the exception of The Growing Pains Movie*(2000), Cameron faded away from traditional Hollywood fare and turned his focus to making faith-based films. One of his most popular projects was the*film adaptation of the hugely popular Christian book series Left Behind. Cameron signed on for three films that depicted the biblical end of days.*

They were not exactly the best movies. In fact, Left Behind author Tim LaHaye hated the first one so much that he sued to get the rights back, according to The Christian Post. However, the films did do well with Christian audiences, who have proved to be a profitable demographic.*

In 2008, Cameron promoted the film*Fireproof*by incorporating it into teaching kits on marriage and marketing it to churches. It earned $33 million at the box office, which was huge considering the film's next-to-nothing budget. Fireproof became the highest grossing independent film of 2008*and made Cameron a prominent figure in Christian circles.

He launched a crusade against Charles Darwin

After the success of Fireproof, Cameron and his ministry partner, Ray Comfort, declared war on the theory of evolution and set out blanketing college campuses with their version of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species. Their campaign made several controversial claims, including blaming Darwin for Nazi Germany.*

Needless to say, this did not go over well everyone, and many folks*had a field day with Comfort and Cameron's claim that the banana proves God's existence. According to a now-infamous YouTube video, the banana's shape and design makes it easy to eat, so clearly it was created by a higher power. That's their big argument.

Except there's one small problem. The bright, yellow, easy-to-peel bananas that we know today are the result of human intervention and genetic modification. Sorry, guys.

He tried to go up against Stephen Hawking

Despite facing ridicule for his attempts to discredit evolution, Cameron decided it would be a good idea to throw shade at world-renowned physicist Stephen Hawking, who had referred to heaven as a "fairy tale story for people afraid of the dark."

"Professor Hawking is heralded as 'the genius of Britain,' yet he believes in the scientific impossibility that nothing created everything and that life sprang from non-life." Cameron told TMZ. "Why should anyone believe Mr. Hawking's writings if he cannot provide evidence for his unscientific belief that out of nothing, everything came?"

For the record, Hawking is considered to be one of the most brilliant scientific minds in the world, while Cameron rose to fame because he was cast in a hit sitcom, despite the show's creators supposedly concluding that "he may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer" after his audition. We'll leave it up to you to decide who you'd rather believe.

He called homosexuality unnatural

In 2012, Cameron continued his habit of making controversial statements by telling Piers Morgan that homosexuality is "unnatural." Many in Hollywood were quick to denounce the former Growing Pains star, including his former TV dad, Alan Thicke, who'd reportedly had enough of Cameron's polarizing stances. "I'm getting him some new books," Thicke said in a statement (via the*Advocate). "The Old Testament simply can't be expected to explain everything."*

Cameron's own sister, former Full House star and born-again Christian Candace Cameron-Bure, made a point to somewhat distance herself from her brother's public statements, telling The Christian Post that they have a "different way of saying the same things."

He accused Facebook of censorship

While promoting his 2013 movie Unstoppable, Cameron discovered that links to the film's website were allegedly being blocked by Facebook, which he attributed to an attack on Christianity.*

However, there was apparently a simple explanation: the address Cameron purchased for the movie used to be a spam site, which set off Facebook's filters. It was an honest mistake, and in a show of good faith, Facebook worked quickly with Cameron's team to reverse the block and issued a statement to The Christian Post to explain the kerfuffle.

Cameron continued to paint the situation as an act of a persecution. In a since-deleted follow-up post on Facebook he wrote (via The Hollywood Reporter,) "Victory!! Friends, you did it! People tried to stop 'Unstoppable' on Facebook, and because millions of us joined together as one voice, Facebook has apologized and welcomed us back! You all just demonstrated to the press (they are all calling me to talk about your amazing response!) that the communities of faith, hope, and love are, well…unstoppable."

He released the worst movie of all time

Despite finding financial success with Fireproof, Cameron earned the wrong kind of accolades with his 2014 holiday feature Kirk Cameron's Saving Christmas.*With a zero percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the film was voted the "worst movie ever" by IMDb users. It even cleaned up at the Razzies where, according to*CNN, it scoured "four wins in the categories of worst picture, screenplay, actor and screen combo, which went to Cameron and 'his ego.'" Ouch.

He gave questionable marriage advice

After the crash and burn of Saving Christmas, Cameron turned his attention to speaking tours with his "Love Worth Fighting For" marriage ministry, but he found himself in hot water in 2016 when the press pounced on some questionable and arguably outdated advice.

"Wives are to honor and respect and follow their husband's lead, not to tell their husband how he ought to be a better husband," Cameron told The Christian Post. "When each person gets their part right, regardless of how their spouse is treating them, there is hope for real change in their marriage."

Cameron faced fierce*backlash on social media for his remarks. Hey, what works for one marriage might not work for another. That's all we'll say about that.

Cameron is still keeping the faith

After enduring years of high-profile criticism for not shying away from the controversial views of his faith, Cameron is still soldiering on with his marriage seminars and has a movie due out in 2017. Even if you don't agree with his stances, you can't deny that Cameron sticks to his principles and won't change who he is to fit the Hollywood mold. He played that game in the '80s, and now the former sitcom star is forging his own path down a very bumpy road. Best of luck.

Read More: http://www.nickiswift.com/77659/what..._campaign=clip

[MrCleveland]

^I do like Kirk Cameron's short-lived sitcom Kirk...I don't think his Christianity destroyed his career...but I wish he made better films.

I wonder if there'll be One-year-wonder Warner Bros. sitcoms on Hulu?