Variety spent decades covering Chuck Norris as a Hollywood icon.
The moment he died, that same magazine called his life's work "dangerous propaganda."
Now DeSantis and half of America want to know what happened to basic human decency at Variety.
Variety's Chuck Norris Hit Piece Drew Instant Conservative Backlash
Chuck Norris died last Thursday at 86. His family asked for privacy. America mourned. Sylvester Stallone called him "All American in every way."
Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Mike Huckabee, and the House Republican caucus all paid tribute within hours.
Variety waited less than a day.
The headline read: "Chuck Norris Was a Great Action Star — but Politics May Overshadow His Legacy."
So-called journalist William Earl didn't stop at film criticism. He argued Norris' movies celebrated the "pernicious attraction" of taking the law into one's own hands — then tied that argument directly to ICE agents doing their jobs and U.S. military action against Iran.
He called Walker, Texas Ranger "cop-aganda." He suggested Norris' characters serve as "justification for a fringe conspiracy movement." Then he closed by hoping for a future where men like Cordell Walker exist only on old VHS tapes.
Walker, Texas Ranger wasn't entertainment to Earl. It was a gateway drug to extremism.
DeSantis and Burchett Blast Variety Over Chuck Norris Legacy Attack
The backlash was immediate and it was scorching.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis didn't hold back: "Chuck Norris was an action legend and a great American. Variety is an example of why so many people detest the media."
Representative Tim Burchett of Tennessee went further. "Chuck Norris spent an enormous amount of time celebrating what was great about America with those who kept us free and safe. And you showed in your arrogance why we hate Hollywood."
This isn't the first time Hollywood's left-wing press has used a conservative icon's death as a political lecture.
When Charlton Heston – another patriotic actor who left the Democrat Party after it went hard left – died in 2008, left-leaning critics spent years reframing his legacy through the prism of his NRA presidency rather than his extraordinary films. When a conservative icon dies, the media doesn't mourn. It prosecutes.
Walker Texas Ranger Star Left a Conservative Legacy Hollywood Hates
Earl's piece frames Norris as a dangerous right-wing agitator who fed conspiratorial thinking. The actual record tells a different story.
Norris served in the United States Air Force. He built a martial arts empire from scratch. He starred in Delta Force, Missing in Action, and Walker, Texas Ranger – roles celebrating American strength, law enforcement, and the rescue of prisoners of war that Democrats abandoned in Vietnam.
He left the Democrat Party after watching it drift Left and said in 2014: "The Democrats just got completely off the trail and lost all reality of what America stood for."
Texas Governor Greg Abbott put it plainly: Norris "electrified generations of conservatives, giving them a passion and voice to fight for the principles that make America the greatest nation on earth."
That is the legacy Variety called "dangerous propaganda."
Why Variety Called Chuck Norris Dangerous Propaganda
Earl's piece isn't film criticism. It's a political statement about the present — one that uses Norris' death as a vehicle for attacking ICE, the Trump administration, and anyone who believes law enforcement should enforce the law.
Norris himself anticipated this. He watched the Democrat Party abandon every principle it once held and walked away. He knew exactly what Hollywood's liberal establishment thought of men like him — men who believed in faith, country, and the rule of law.
Variety just proved him right one more time. William Earl wanted readers to be "thankful" that men like Chuck Norris only exist in movies.
He got his verdict. So did Chuck Norris, every single day he was alive.
Sources:
- Nora Moriarty, "Hollywood outlet slammed for saying Chuck Norris' politics, 'cop-aganda' overshadowed his legacy," Fox News, March 21, 2026.
- William Earl, "Chuck Norris Was a Great Action Star — but Politics May Overshadow His Legacy," Variety, March 20, 2026.
- Nick Arama, "Oh, No, You Don't: People Band Together, Rip to Shreds Garbage Media Take About Chuck Norris," RedState, March 20, 2026.
- Christian Toto, "Hollywood Media Sinks to New, Predictable Low," Hollywood in Toto, March 21, 2026.
- "Chuck Norris Dead: Celeb Tributes From Stallone, Gina Carano, More," The Hollywood Reporter, March 20, 2026.
