Actor Jesse Hutch recently sat down for a conversation with Christian Headlines where he discussed his decision to move away from doing the usual Hollywood fair, which is typically saturated in edgy, sexual content and situations, to instead create family-friendly romantic comedies that kids and parents can enjoy with each other. He then revealed that while this choice likely led to his losing some major opportunities that could have taken his acting career to the next level, he’s fine with it and even called it a wonderful decision because it is one that is in line with his faith.
According to The Christian Tribune:
In the interview, he noted that the big plus is that “There are no surprises” in the family-friendly rom-coms in which he stars. So, he said, “… My kids can just walk in on [these movies] at any time. And we’re not going to have this crazy deep conversation about something that we’re not ready for yet.”
Continuing, he commented on how he has turned down roles he finds inappropriate for vile, such as when he was asked to “make out with a horse.” He said, describing that incident to Christian Headlines, “I was once asked in an audition if I would make-out with a horse. And I said, ‘Like a real horse?’ And they’re like, ‘Yeah, like a real one.’ … I just was like, ‘No, I’m good. We’re done.”
He also noted how even things that might appear small in movies, like a kiss with the co-star, is something he has to talk about his wife with, as he doesn’t want his career to get in the way of his marriage. He said, “Even in romantic comedies, there’s a kiss. And I have to have that conversation with my wife, with my kids. Obviously, my wife and I have grown together, and we have an understanding of what this is how we do that, and where our comfort levels are.”
Hutch then stated that these kind of scenes are ones that he has to discuss with his children saying, “But my kids, they’re getting older, they’re like, ‘Dad, you are kissing another girl — what’s going on?’ And we’ve had these conversations.’ So even on that level, you still have to have honest conversations with your loved ones about that.”
This is exactly why “Growing Pains” actor and Christian apologist Kirk Cameron refuses to kiss anyone other than his wife in the movies or projects he stars in. In fact, in the popular faith-based film “Fireproof,” which calls for a kissing scene, Cameron ended up doing the scene behind a sheet with his wife and not the actress in the film, with the sun casting their shadows on the sheet so that viewers could not tell it wasn’t the actress Cameron was smacking lips with.
But while he can potentially get over a kiss, there are some things he refuses to do and has no regrets about refusing. He said, “[But] there’s some projects, of course, that just really push that envelope. And it’s like, wow, this is filled with way more passion, it’s filled with — maybe even nudity is what they want. And I’m not interested in any of that. There’s been a couple of times where I thought, ‘Would my career have gone a different direction?’ Absolutely. Do I regret it? No.”
Hutch said during the conversation that while some folks might get their shorts twisted up over his very strong stance about these issues, he noted that his beliefs and convictions are firm because those things were put in his heart by God and he can live with that.
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“People can get offended sometimes if you stand your ground, and that’s okay. I can’t live in that. I have to live in the fact that, hey, God put conviction on my heart. I gotta follow that,” he said in the interview.
We need more actors of faith like Cameron and Hutch who will stick to their convictions no matter what. Let’s hope that happens as time moves forward.