John Cusack

The Religion and Political Views of John Cusack

Summary

Religion

Raised Catholic, Cusack may still be a Christian or have some distant belief in God, but he is no longer Catholic.

Political Views

He doesn’t seem to like politics much and shows contempt for the right. Holds liberals views but is also unhappy with how the left governs.

Wiki

Cusack's rare comments on religion are difficult to deconstruct, but indicate he may have a loose belief in Christianity.

In a 2008 interview with Vanity Fair, when asked who his heroes in real life are, Cusack said

Let's go with Jesus. Not the gay-hating, war-making, political tool of the right, but the outcast, subversive.[1]

This would indicate that not only does Cusack possibly believe in Jesus, but he doesn't like the right wing much, preferring a Jesus who

….despised and doomed to the rich and powerful. The man Gary Wills described 'with the future in his eyes….paradoxically calming and provoking,' and whom Flannery O'Connor saw as 'the ragged figure who moves from tree to tree in the back of [one's] mind.'[2]

It seems John Cusack likes Jesus, but whether he believes in him as the Son of God or just likes the idea of him is another story.

He's not Catholic, as he stated in an interview with belief.net,

I was raised Catholic, until I was old enough to say no.[3]

Adding later in the same interview:

I was raised Irish Catholic, but I don't consider myself Irish Catholic. I consider myself me, an American. I was raised Catholic, until I was old enough to say no.[4]

More liberal but not of the knee-jerk variety

Cusack's indication of the Jesus he prefers, i.e. 'not the right wing tool,' would indicate he has some contempt for the right.

He is against guns, or at least feels that they can be obtained too easily.

Death is a billion-dollar business.' They can't even pass a law where it takes 7 days to get a gun. Why don't you have to go through the same kind of screening you do to get a driver's license?[5]

Cusack went on a twitter rant against Fox News, tweeting:

I AM FOR A SATANIC DEATH CULT CENTER AT FOX NEWS HQ AND OUTSIDE THE OFFICES ORDICK ARMEYAND NEWT GINGRICH[6]

This further indicates his dislike for the right wing. During his interview with belief.net [conducted in 2003] he was asked about politics and said:

It's all aesthetics. And even the people who are covering politics don't question whether that's right or not. They just tell you "Bush is doing a wonderful job of convincing people he is compassionate." It's a very successful con job. We've stopped questioning that it's all theatre. We all know it. It's just disgusting.[7]

Whether this was a stab at politics in general or a more precise attack on Bush and the Republican government at the time, is hard to be sure of, but most of Cusack's political criticisms do seem aimed at the right.

Cusack has however also shown some contempt for Obama.

In 2012 he wrote a piece on Obama, asking:

Is the President just another Ivy League A–hole shredding civil liberties and due process and sending people to die in some s–thole for purely political reasons?[8]

Cusack has also shown contempt for left wing liberal media, suggesting they are kinder to Obama and don't question what he does as much.

Under Obama do we continue to call the thousands of mercenaries in Afghanistan "general contractors" now that Bush is gone? No, we don't talk about them… not a story anymore.[9]

It seems Cusack is generally not a fan of politics and politicians, and tends to attack the person in charge at the time. Earlier during the Bush administration he attacked Bush and the right wing media. Now he focuses more on Obama and the left wing media.

Still, Cusack's Twitter account smacks of a proud, though possibly conflicted, liberal.[10]

Cusack is not keen on right wing politics but is also disillusioned with what the left is doing while in power.

This article written by Wojciech Zdrojkowski

What do you think of this?

Loading comments...