Actor Chad Michael Murray revealed this week that he’s turned down roles over the past 22 years to stay true to his Christian faith.
The “One Tree Hill” actor told Fox News Digital he’s had to “stick to the things” he “believes in.”
“I stick to the things I believe in,” Murray said. “Let’s just say a piece of material were to come across my desk, which has happened plenty of times over the last 22 years, that I don’t necessarily feel is what I believe or what I’m selling — then that’s not for me.”
The 40-year-old father of two explained that his avoidance of such roles not only keeps him in line with his beliefs, but betters the project in question.
“I don’t want to step in something that I don’t believe in any way because it’s going to destroy it for everybody else involved,” he said. “If you don’t fully love and embrace the character that you are inhabiting, it will show on screen. I always want to give the people that I’m working with and the people who are going to watch the movie, the most of me.”
Murray, starring in new film “Fortress: Sniper’s Eye,” told Fox that reading his Bible and consuming daily devotionals all help him keep his faith in Hollywood.
“I get up every day and I put that spiritual armor on, read the Bible and do some devotionals and then get ready to go to work,” the actor said, adding, “I feel stronger and safer walking onto my sets every day knowing that I have God with me every day. Jesus is there with me every day. … When you have that comfort that you just feel safe, you feel different, you feel the opportunity to handle more, your shoulders are bigger, you can carry more weight.”
And, most important, Murray keeps his family close.
“My family and I, for instance, we don’t split up the pack,” he insisted. “We go everywhere. My kids, my wife, they go everywhere we go. So, I’m on set chilling with Bruce Willis in Puerto Rico — they’re there. Although, they’re on the beach, very different.”
“We keep the pack together,” Murray added. “We have a very traditional home life. We’re not people who are typically out and going out. I’m not a good hobnobber. It’s not my strong suit. I’ve gotta be honest. I’m more of a homebody.”
Speaking about faith in Hollywood is not the norm, but Murray is not alone. For example, actor Mark Wahlberg, star of Catholic film “Father Stu,” recently said he plans on moving toward films of “real substance,” and will likely leave Hollywood “sooner rather than later.”
“I feel like this is starting a new chapter for me in that, now, doing things like this — real substance — can help people,” the 50-year-old actor told Entertainment Tonight. “I definitely want to focus on making more. I wouldn’t say necessarily just faith-based content but things that will help people. So, hopefully this movie will open a door for not only myself but for lots of other people in Hollywood to make more meaningful content.”
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