Oops! Gay Actor In Evangelical Film Stirs Controversy

The evangelical backers of the independent film End of the Spear - the true story of a missionaries killed in Ecuador-- knowingly hired out actor Chad Allen (of Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman) for the lead role. Their philosophy was the old saw "hate the sin, but love the sinner." But right before the movie opened (to poor box office) in January, other evangelicals realized who Allen was and flipped. (Their philosophy is the even older idea of "hate the sin and hate the sinner.")Focus on the Family, of all people, defends the filmmakers.

"Has Focus on the Family made a strong statement against homosexuality? Absolutely," said the head of their media review department. "But what is the message of the product? And do we at Focus feel compelled to check on the sexual history of everyone in a movie? Did they have a D.U.I.? Did they pay their taxes?"

Of course, there's a big difference between doing a background check on everyone involved in a movie and hiring an out actor well-known for his gay rights activism. Maybe FOTF is feeling a little confused? We really liked Allen in Dr. Quinn, too.