'Outrageous!' 'Tears of Joy.' Hollywood reacts to Trump's guilty verdict with rage, rapture
Former Olympian and reality television star Caitlyn Jenner called it "outrageous."
Former "Saturday Night Live" star Rob Schneider urged Americans to refrain from violence.
And "Star Wars" legend Mark Hamill just posted the word "Guilty" — 34 times.
The reactions posted on social media pages Thursday were, of course, to the biggest news in years: Former President Trump was found guilty of 34 criminal counts of falsifying business records in New York. There was a time when it was considered bad form for Hollywood celebrities to take a stand on polarizing political issues or politicians for fear it could harm their movie or television careers.
Trump's conviction shows that some stars have no qualms about making their opinions known on what many considered the most divisive politician in years.
Jenner, a reality television star, fired off a response Thursday in all capital letters on X: “VERDICT REACHED!!! DONALD J. TRUMP IS BEING PERSECUTED BY CORRUPT STATE OF NY AND COMPROMISED DOJ!
Read more: Guilty: Trump becomes first former U.S. president convicted of felony crimes
That was minutes before the guilty verdict was rendered.
Jenner, a former California Republican gubernatorial candidate, followed by subtweeting “An outrageous day for America. The entire process has been outrageous, of course. Shame on the state of New York. Shame on the corrupt DOJ."
Schneider, who starred in such movies as "Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo" and "The Hot Chick," called for vengeance in the immediate aftermath of the verdict but not for violence.
"Now the Republicans will have to retaliate against Democrats when they regain power," he tweeted. "I appeal to ALL AMERICANS TO REFRAIN FROM VIOLENCE."
Shortly after that tweet, however, Schneider railed against California politics and also wondered why God hasn't destroyed the state. Schneider has paid for his political activism in the past, including when he lost a State Farm ad campaign for his stance against childhood vaccinations.
Some celebrities just wanted to document the moment without taking a side.
Actress and musician Sheryl Lee Ralph tweeted about the conviction and said "a cheer has erupted from Collect Pond Park," which sits across the street from the New York County Criminal Court, where Trump was tried.
Others, however, relished a moment they felt was a long time coming.
Comedian Kathy Griffin famously saw her career stall after posting a photo of a bloody and decapitated head of Trump in 2017.
First, Griffin said she couldn't take the suspense and was "praying so hard for a guilty verdict." Once the news hit, Griffin thanked Stormy Daniels, the adult entertainer and a key witness in the trial. Griffin also thanked fans who stuck with her through the backlash of 2017's photos.
"It was awful and he is awful," she tweeted along with "TEARS OF JOY" followed by a heart and crying emoji.
Hamill, Luke Skywalker of Star Wars lore, only tweeted one word, "Guilty," in bold, red letters but he did it 34 times a reference to the 34 counts against Trump.
Thursday presented a play-on-words opportunity for hit sitcom "How I Met Your Mother" co-creator and producer Craig Thomas.
The writer tweeted a series of posts displaying his happiness for the verdict, the first being of Ghostbuster Winston Zeddemore, portrayed by the actor Ernie Hudson, shouting "I love this town," in reference to New York City.
Thomas followed with tweets that said "How I Met Your Accountability," "And that, kids, is how American democracy was saved," and lastly, "And stay out. — NYC, to Trump."
Horror author Stephen King, a vocal Trump critic, tweeted out, "The Republican candidate for President is a convicted felon."
Kevin Sorbo, an actor known for playing Hercules on the television series "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys," tweeted four words: "Still voting for Trump."
Most of the hosts of the morning show "The View" — no strangers to political discussions — refrained from commenting on Twitter, including outspoken celebs Whoopi Goldberg, Sunny Hostin and Sara Haines.
Alyssa Farah Griffin, Trump's former White House director of strategic communications, tweeted, "Wild: a felon wouldn’t be eligible for the Top Secret security clearance required to work as staff in the West Wing. But the POTUS can be a convicted felon & receive much higher classified info."
Longtime host Joy Behar, who once called Trump the "most dangerous" president in her lifetime, did not make a statement. She did, however, retweet King.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
