Days after Family Guy and The Orville creator Seth MacFarlane tweeted that was “embarrassed to work for” Fox over comments by Fox News’ Tucker Carlson, another top 20th Century Fox TV showrunner, Modern Family co-creator Steve Levitan, is joining him, tweeting that he is “disgusted” to work for Fox following a controversial statement by a Fox News star, Laura Ingraham.
Responding to a tweet quoting Ingraham, who on her program Monday called the children detention centers along the Mexican border “essentially summer camps,” Levitan wrote, “Let me officially join @SethMacFarlane in saying I’m disgusted to work at a company that has anything whatsoever to do with @FoxNews. This bullshit is the opposite of what #ModernFamily stands for.”
MacFarlane and Levitan are the two biggest comedy creators/showrunners on 20th Century Fox TV roster. And while MacFarlane — whose series Family Guy, The Orville and Cosmos air on Fox News sister network Fox Broadcasting Co. — has more time on his overall deal at the studio, Levitan — whose Modern Family, co-created by Christopher Lloyd, airs on ABC — is at the end of his 20th TV overall pact and is currently mulling his studio future. 20th TV is among the 21st Century Fox assets that are up for sale, with Disney and Comcast vying for them. FBC will be staying behind as part of New Fox, along with Fox News.
On Saturday, replying to a tweet quoting Carlson’s on-air suggestion that viewers should discount any other news sources besides Fox News, MacFarlane tweeted “This is fringe sh-t, and it’s business like this that makes me embarrassed to work for this company.”
Levitan’s tweet also comes hours after Judd Apatow urged Fox showrunners and talent to call out Fox News Channel’s coverage of the Trump administration’s zero-tolerance immigration policy.
Must Read Stories
Subscribe to Deadline Breaking News Alerts and keep your inbox happy.