In 1998, Seinfeld fans learned on the episode “The Burning” that Elaine’s then-boyfriend David Puddy was a Christian. This week, the actor behind Puddy’s ultra macho man persona, Patrick Warburton, revealed his career is partially driven by faith, and delivered some grating words to both Family Guy and Rolling Stone.
Warburton’s career of course didn’t start, or end, with his supporting role on Seinfeld.
His successful television run has spanned 25 years, and millennials might recognize his voice as that of Joe Swanson, the wheelchair-bound paraplegic police officer on Seth McFarland’s Family Guy.
No prude, the politically incorrect 50-year-old also starred in numerous TV shows, including the CBS sitcom Rules of engagement for seven seasons, and has most recently appeared in McFarland’s Mark Wahlberg-starred comedy films Ted and Ted 2.
During an interview with HuffPost Live this week ahead of the release of Ted 2, Warburton sat down with Josh Zepps to discuss his recurring role on Family Guy, as well as his character in Ted.
After promoting the film, Warburton revealed a joke on an episode of Family Guy, a show he described as an “equal opportunity offender,” was once so blatantly anti-Christian, he refused to be a part of it.
“There was a joke on one episode that… wasn’t funny at all, and it was truly the most offensive thing I’ve ever seen ever in any form of media towards Christians,” he said. “It was… so offensive that I said, ‘If that’s in the show, I can’t do this episode… Put it in another f—ing episode that I’m not in…’ We all wonder if we have a line that can be crossed and I just discovered there is actually a line with me.”
Warburton was then asked by Zepps why he was offended by the joke.
He responded: “It’s because I’m a Christian and it’s also because I just see it as diminished returns. Like it’s something that you’re just going to get a jillion people to just turn the TV off… We turn it off in our house too every now and then when it gets just too sacrilegious.”
Warburton also went after Rolling Stone for its cover selections over the years, and said he recently deleted a tweet asking when the publication would feature Charleston shooter Dylann Roof on its front page.
“I’ve always had an issue with Rolling Stone,” he said. “They put f—ing Snooki on the cover. Rush just made it — one of the greatest rock bands on the cover of Rolling Stone, just now. And they had the Boston bomber on the cover when they talked about the 100 most important rock bands of all time, they didn’t include Pearl Jam.
“They can really be f—ing idiots over there,” he concluded of Rolling Stone.
To watch Warburton’s entire HuffPo interview, click here.
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