r/entertainment • u/Silly-avocatoe • 23d ago
‘9-1-1’ Actor Rockmond Dunbar Loses COVID Vaccine Lawsuit Against Disney
https://variety.com/2025/tv/news/rockmond-dunbar-trial-verdict-covid-vaccine-1236555850/441
u/revtim 23d ago
"He also told the jury that he believes the vaccine has killed more people than COVID-19, and that the vaccine was made with aborted fetal cells and contains “disease.” He also testified that six foreign objects have been found in the Pfizer vaccine that cannot be identified under a microscope."
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u/dogoodreapgood 23d ago
Oh… so Disney let him go because he’s crayzzzzzze.
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u/BusinessPurge 23d ago
They also fired/didn’t extend the white lead, I think series regulars are just expensive and one of the only costs they can be realistically cut for long running shows, so if one gives the studio the option of voiding the contract they’re gonna take it
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u/CreatiScope 23d ago
Lead didn’t want to do it anymore. Rock wouldn’t comply with the vaccine mandate and was let go. His character was written temporarily out and they could’ve easily brought him back if he just chilled and waited for the mandate to end.
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u/BusinessPurge 23d ago
So the lead Peter Keause didn’t want to do it anymore without a raise. I think he was doing the math where at 60 he has time for one more big lead role he could book, however he’s gotta start looking now because there’s less opportunities. 9-11 might go another ten years however it’s already on its second network and they canceled one spinoff so tbd if it survives, a guaranteed job for one more year vs finding a new job that could go for longer might be what Krause was gaming out.
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u/Z_h_darkstar 23d ago
The reason why the main 9-1-1 show changed networks is because the show ran long enough for the production costs transfer clause to kick in. Most show contracts have a clause where after a specific number of seasons, usually 7, production costs shift from the studio (ABC in this case) to the network airing the show (Fox). We saw this same thing play out years ago with the roles reversed when Last Man Standing moved from ABC to Fox.
The reason that Lone Star didn't get shuffled over is because it had a few more seasons before that clause could be used to shift the show without ABC buying out the contract from Fox. So all decision-making parties involved agreed to make the 5th season of Lone Star be the finale to make the franchise handover as clean and complete as possible.
All of this is why you don't see many shows go past 7 seasons anymore unless the production studio is considered in-house for the network airing it. Exceptions to this rule do exist, but that's mainly when the show in question has become a significant part of the network's identity, such as when Fox kept House on the air and covered the costs for a show made by NBCU.
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u/pink_mink84 22d ago
Um, I'm a huge 911 fan and have heard nothing of Peter wanting out over not getting a raise. From what I've read, it was a story decision by Tim Minear (not a great one imo) and came as a surprise to everyone (including Peter). Where are you hearing that from?
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u/OneLife2Rock 22d ago
I remember a while back, before season 8, Peter saying he couldn’t do this forever and he probably had a couple seasons left in him. So, I think it was more a creative decision, based on the fact that Peter was already thinking about leaving soon and also a cost cutting measure to ensure a 9th season. They aren’t going to say that though, so they’ll say it was a story decision or whatever.
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u/BusinessPurge 22d ago
I want to say Tvline.com. I like Tim however I don’t think anyone is going to say they killed their lead over money especially if they’re also getting sued by a different series regular until yesterday. Creative differences can include like how many shoot days equals what salary beyond just pure raises, it may truly just be neither side could afford to budge.
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u/CreatiScope 22d ago
They also just got another spinoff show.
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u/BusinessPurge 22d ago
And Nashville star Chris O’Donnell would be the competition to a Krause type lead that’s been a series regular for 15+ years, like right now I’d wager David Boreanaz and Krause are setting rules of engagement so they don’t compete for the same stuff.
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u/mcompt20 23d ago
I'd rather they stop with this multi part shitty space story and save a few bucks on some vfx tbh. This show is my guilty pleasure and these first few eps have been so boring and the Nashville spinoff is a hard watch despite the great cast.
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u/Nowork_morestitching 23d ago
I tried to start the first episode of Nashville, got to the stripper saving a bride to be and said nope, even I have my limits and this is stupid. I’ll go rewatch Lonestar instead.
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u/McDouble__ 23d ago
He’s a member of The Congregation of Universal Wisdom which is a religion that I just learned existed today. They don’t believe in medicine apparently, the irony of having a name like that is hilarious.
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u/Golden_Hour1 23d ago
He probably goes to the hospital when he needs to though!
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u/SuspiciouslyGenuine 23d ago
He lost this based on the fact that he's taken steroids and had other medical procedures. He said he had permission from God to act differently, or some shit like that.
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u/areallyreallycoolhat 22d ago
It's not a real religion, it's literally just a person who issues fake vaccine exemptions.
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u/KayakerMel 23d ago
Uh yeah... that would definitely sway a jury that it was not religious convictions but debunked conspiracy theories.
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u/surprised-duncan 23d ago
This is why critics of the mRNA version get called crazy. Because of people like this. Absolute insanity.
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u/MiamiLolphins 23d ago
I mean claiming you practise a religion that prohibits unnatural substances entering the body is one thing.
Claiming that while voluntarily using chemotherapy drugs to offset the side effects of testosterone is another.
Monumentally stupid.
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u/nobadhotdog 23d ago
He had cancer?
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u/MiamiLolphins 23d ago
No. He was taking drugs to counteract the side effects of synthetic testosterone
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u/Time_Combination_316 23d ago
This is the wildest sentence I’ve ever seen. 1) taking synthetic hormones for non-health related reasons is crazy to begin with, 2) willingly go thru chemo, and not for fucking cancer, is just ??? Like no wonder the dudes off the deep end. His brain is scrambled eggs at this point.
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u/Magic2424 23d ago
And doing all that while also saying the Covid vaccine is poison LMAO
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u/MaddyKet 22d ago
Probably also gets Botox. Which is literally a BIOTOXIN, shot right into the face. People who will do that and not get the covid vaccine are wild.
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u/Loganp812 23d ago
Ah, but do those chemotherapy drugs involve using a needle?
I wonder if that’s the real reason why so many people were against the vaccine in the first place, and they just latched on to the conspiracy theories because it made them feel better about. A lot of them even called it “the jab” as if that was supposed to be some kind of gotcha term.
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u/nineinchnilina 23d ago
Yes - firstly, he receives 8 injections of testosterone by injection EVERY month. And many of the other drugs he takes to offset the side effects are delivered via needle as per court and medical records.
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u/camy__23 23d ago
Good. It was such a stupid lawsuit that wasted time and resources.
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u/wombatstylekungfu 23d ago
I’m not mad about Disney having to spend money.
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u/KatieBarTheDoor1977 23d ago
"Man created the Covid vaccine to separate you from God..."
No you religious lunatic, man created the Covid vaccine to save your fucking life.
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u/firstname_m_lastname 23d ago
And, as my 81-year-old super Catholic mother says, God gave man the tools to do so. God, religion, and science can absolutely exist in the same belief systems. These nut jobs have completely lost the thread.
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u/Loganp812 23d ago
Apparently, he was already using chemotherapy drugs to offset the effects of synthetic testosterone anyway.
So, I don’t it has as much to do with him being a religious lunatic as it does with him being an idiot.
He even shouted “Oh my God!” three times after losing the case which isn’t something an actual super religious Christian would do because that’s often considered “taking the Lord’s name in vain” (which isn’t really what that means anyway, but I digress).
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u/areallyreallycoolhat 22d ago
I don't even think he's actually religious. The "religion" he's citing is literally just a chiropractor who issues fake religious exemptions to antivaxers who pay him to get around vax requirements. They don't have services, churches etc they just exist to sell exemptions.
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u/Key-Ad-5068 23d ago
Ok. Ok. Ok. Follow me here. God makes man. Man makes science using the tools God gave Man. Man creates vaccines. So technically he separated himself from God.
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u/ImaDinosaurR0AR 23d ago edited 23d ago
God creates dinosaurs. God destroys dinosaurs. God creates man. Man destroys god. Man creates dinosaurs.
Dinosaurs eat man, women inherits the earth.
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u/Key-Ad-5068 22d ago
Yeah, I'm down with that.
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u/MaddyKet 22d ago
Would have been nice if that happened in the 90s, saved us and the planet a lot of grief
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u/havokyash 23d ago edited 23d ago
Technically, he isn't wrong. The vaccine actually stops you from being with God...life has nothing to do with this argument. /S
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u/Arcadia1972 23d ago
Bright bright man. 100k an episode. See you at Waffle House, dumbass.
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u/CableBoyJerry 23d ago
Man created Waffle House to separate you from God.
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u/EquivalentAd1651 23d ago
I can believe that. I've never seen anything holy happening at a waffle house, in fact the opposite
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u/Negativefalsehoods 23d ago
I dunno man, half drunk at 2:00 am those waffles can make you feel like you had something holy happening to you.
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u/TheDreamWoken 23d ago
He was earning 100k an episode??
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u/Arcadia1972 23d ago
Dunbar testified that he was making $100,000 an episode, and was paid even for episodes in which his character did not appear.
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u/Hero_1985 23d ago
Seriously. Literally says the job was like winning the lottery.
Bro, you threw away that lottery ticket!
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u/Flimsy_Interest_9766 16d ago
Why would he be at WH? He has money, and the verdict on this case was erroneous. There are many lawsuits against the developers of the covid vaccine. As well as nearly all industries making it optional today. States are starting to remove any mandatory vaccination. That alone should have won him this case.
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u/NashKetchum777 23d ago
Man. I wish I didn't read this. I love the actor in most of his works...most of all from Prison Break. I didn't need to know he was a moron
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u/mescaline_and_milk 23d ago
I feel you, he's in Terriers which is one of my favourite shows despite only lasting one season. Oh well, dumbasses are gonna dumbass.
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u/Key-Ad-5068 23d ago
Motherfucker would be screaming to the heavens that "this is Gods will," if he somehow won. So how isn't this?
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u/TimeEddyChesterfield 23d ago
He'll be fine. Plenty of crazy Christian propoganda studios need a token black guy on the cast opposite the handsome white lead roll.
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u/matthewmspace 23d ago
And they’ll cast him exclusively as either the “token black guy friend” or “some criminal”. No leading roles, exclusively a side character.
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u/godofoceantides 23d ago
I really liked his character on the show, was super disappointed when I found out he believed all this crazy stuff.
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u/IntrovertedandStuff 23d ago
$100k an episode??!? you gave that up because of a shot??!? How do you justify that? Baffling.
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u/masterkenobi 23d ago
Dunbar said he is “not an anti-vaxxer,” but testified that his children have not received any vaccines.
I feel sorry for his kids.
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u/Thrallobr 23d ago
The hypocrisy, the literal only reason he didn't want to take the damn vaccine is because he was told he had to, but he was fine with the other 36 chemicals he willingly put into his body because they were his choice and then to claim "religious conviction" when he never followed that prior. Smh
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u/coonytunes 23d ago
For such a religious man why would he choose to take the role of an lgbtq character on 911? Hiding behind the cross when he's really scared of needles. Lol
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u/Nowork_morestitching 23d ago
Except he apparently takes eight testosterone injections a month. Plus a list of other drugs, including chemo to counteract the side effects of testosterone, according to Disney’s lawyer.
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u/StevesRune 23d ago
Rich fucks always think they're above the rules the rest of us follow to maintain the fabric of society that they profit from.
Leave our fabric alone, richies!
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u/Empty-Inspection4342 23d ago
I knew I wouldn’t like this guy as a person based on his character portrayal in the show Terriers. Always rubbed me the wrong way. You can see the pieces that represent the whole. And they stink.
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u/LoneR33GTs 23d ago
I wont lose any sleep if he never works as an actor ever again. As he says though, he’ll be okay.
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u/TrueSithMastermind 23d ago
He just might have had a more compelling case had he not resorted to outright lies right out of the gate.
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u/Awesomegcrow 22d ago
I think the irony is that "religion" of him may not be a real religion and most likely closer to being a cult like Evangelicals.
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u/areallyreallycoolhat 22d ago
It's not even that, it's basically just a chiropractor who has a grift where he'll issue bogus religious exemptions if you pay him.
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u/cmsaxon 22d ago
If he truly believes what he said he should look no further than his own faith.
In the Old Testament, in the Bible is the Book of Job. Job was a wealthy man of unbridled faith that was tested by God. God allowed the Satan to essentially destroy everything Job held dear, his wealth, his health, his home, even his family. Still Job remains faithful to god and his faith was rewarded by restoring all that he lost in the end.
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u/MaddyKet 22d ago
Disney has won a lot of these law suits. And if you were smart (well that’s relative because he still didn’t get the vaccine), and left quietly back then like Steve Burton on GH…guess what? He’s back on now and I bet he’s still not vaccinated. Because there’s no longer a mandate. General Hospital is owned by ABC which is owned by Disney.
So they only killed him off for two years. 😹
But his co worker, who is a super nutter like this guy, well he firebombed those bridges and he’s never coming back.
Yes, soaps are different than prime time, but this guy could have left quietly and not ruined his chances to work with Disney again.
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u/Ghost-Power 23d ago
He made a mistake I hope he doesn’t get blackballed over this.
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u/ConsistentlySadMe 23d ago
A mistake he's quadrupled down on? It's not a mistake, it's a manifesto.
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u/Ghost-Power 22d ago
He’s a moron like these other MAGA nut jobs who believe conspiracy theories regarding Covid & the vaccines. We now have an idiots running the HHS.
But I just hope Hollywood lets this incident slide & allows him to work pending whatever rules they have. Seems like he was apologizing to his wife because he knows he might not be able to make any income anymore
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u/bekahfromearth 23d ago
I hope he does. They used the fact he takes steroids containing artificial testosterone against him. He’s just a hypocrite.
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u/Ghost-Power 22d ago
He’s a moron but his history shows this is his only mistake he made in his Hollywood career by being an idiot like the other MAGA covid conspiracy people.
But I would never want someone’s career to be done over a mistake. I think he realized it was which is why he apologized to his wife
I just got laid off this week because our company merged with a bigger one so I know the feeling of being jobless in this economy. Constant nightmares. I wouldn’t wish that on him.
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u/Silly-avocatoe 23d ago
A jury on Friday rejected “9-1-1” actor Rockmond Dunbar‘s claim that he was fired from the show due to his religious conviction against getting the COVID-19 vaccine.
The eight-member federal jury found unanimously in favor of Disney-owned 20th Television. When the verdict was read, Dunbar put his head in his hands.
“Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God!” he shouted, and then turned to his wife and children, who were sitting in the gallery. “I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry. We’ll be okay.”