Jennifer Lawrence had previously been vocal in her condemnation of President Trump’s administration in the past, but now isn’t sure that she should continue to “add fuel to the fire” that is currently burning down the U.S.
The first administration of Trump was something many people believed would never be repeated, yet, somehow, the former reality TV star is back in The White House – the part he has not demolished – and this time even more people seem to be unhappy about it. However, for Lawrence, there is a definite question about whether continuing to speak out against Trump’s running of the country is doing anything other than adding to the growing divide. Speaking on The New York Times’ The Interview podcast, the Oscar-winner said:
“I don’t really know if I should. The first Trump administration was so wild and just how can we let this stand? I felt like I was running around like a chicken with my head cut off. But as we’ve learned, election after election, celebrities do not make a difference whatsoever on who people vote for. So then what am I doing? I’m just sharing my opinion on something that’s going to add fuel to a fire that’s ripping the country apart. We are so divided.”
Lawrence continued to explain how sharing an opinion on politics can have a catastrophic impact on the entertainment industry, where a movie or any other form of art can suffer from a star’s political leaning. She said:
“I think I’m in a complicated recalibration because I’m also an artist,” Lawrence continued. “With this temperature and the way things can turn out, I don’t want to start turning people off to films and to art that could change consciousness or change the world because they don’t like my political opinions. I want to protect my craft so that you can still get lost in what I’m doing. And if I can’t say something that’s going to speak to some kind of peace or lowering the temperature or some sort of solution, I don’t want to be a part of the problem. I don’t want to make the problem worse… You watch these actors’ faces who have had incredible careers and made incredible contributions and then one half of the internet doesn’t want to see their face anymore. I get so upset for those people and it feels so wrong.”
Jennifer Lawrence Is Letting Her Art Speak for Her
Jennifer Lawrence in Passengers
Sony Pictures Entertainment
Rather than completely backing away from political commentary, Lawrence has shifted focus from speaking out publicly to allowing the movies her production company make do the work for her. She added:
“I try to express my politics through my work. A lot of movies coming out from my production company are expressions of the political landscape and that’s how I feel like I can be helpful.”
As a final shot, Lawrence suggested joked that she often regrets some of the things she has said in the past about the Trump administration, but in the end, America should be under no illusions what it voted for this time around.
“Probably? I regret everything I’ve ever done or said. I’m going to take the zip drives out of all of these cameras when I leave. The second term feels different. Because he said what he was going to do. We knew what he did for four years. He was very clear. And that’s what we chose.”
