Originally appeared on E! Online
John Mulaney is speaking out in defense of his wife Olivia Munn.
Watch NBC 5 free wherever you are
WATCH HEREAfter the "Newsroom" alum remarked that she doesn’t let the couple’s two kids Malcolm, 3, and Méi, 8 months, watch YouTuber Ms. Rachel’s kid-friendly content, the comedian revealed that the statement led to some unexpected criticism.
“An innocent comment my wife Olivia Munn made about what children's programs we like,” he wrote in a post on his Instagram Stories June 11, “has somehow unbelievably been conflated with not caring about the deaths of children in Gaza.”
Get top local stories delivered to you every morning with NBC DFW's News Headlines newsletter.
SIGN UP The 42-year-old noted that Munn, 44, had begun receiving DMs with “violent and threatening comments and messages” directed at her and their children.
“The people doing this are so wildly out of line and so unhelpful to any conversation,” he continued. “You took a nothing comment to a dark and dangerous place. This kind of behavior isn't activism.”
Days earlier, Munn explained why Ms. Rachel (real name Rachel Griffin Accurso) isn’t an active presence in her household.
Entertainment News
READ YouTuber Ms. Rachel and Mr. Aron Share Update on New Baby Girl
“I know kids love [Ms. Rachel],” she said in an interview with People published June 8, “but the thing is, if I can't watch it, I'm not going to spend the rest of my life going crazy. These kid shows drive me crazy.” (The publication has since taken the interview down, though the reason for the move is unclear.)
Ms. Rachel — who has called for humanitarian aid to be sent to children in Gaza — subsequently reacted to headlines focused on the remark, writing in a comment shared on Instagram June 9, “I'd rather you cover my advocacy for kids in Gaza.”
The YouTuber added that her statement was not directed at Munn, noting that she doesn’t “care that she doesn’t want to watch the show” while sending “all my love to her and her family.”
Munn subsequently issued a statement of her own, writing that she “never anticipated” her comment would have such a ripple effect.
“My comments were never meant to diminish the joy, comfort and impact she brings to so many families,” she wrote in an Instagram Stories post June 10. “I don't want something taken out of context to be a moment that steals even a minute of joy for anyone.”
