Novelist Stephen King has come under attack from multiple MAGA figures for suggesting that conservative activist Charlie Kirk supported “stoning gays to death.”
King, author of iconic books such as Carrie, The Shining, and It, made the remarks about Kirk while replying on X to Fox News’ Jesse Watters, who had praised the Turning Point USA founder after he was shot and killed in Utah on Wednesday.
“He advocated stoning gays to death. Just sayin’,” King, 77, a frequent critic of President Donald Trump, posted to his 6.8 million X followers on Thursday.
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In June 2024, Kirk cited biblical scripture that describes homosexuality as an “abomination.”
Kirk made the remarks on his podcast while attacking children’s YouTube star Ms. Rachel, who had quoted Leviticus to say that God urges Christians to “love thy neighbor,” including gay people.
“By the way, Ms. Rachel, you might want to crack open that Bible of yours. In a lesser reference, part of the same part of scripture, in Leviticus 18, is that ‘thou shall lay with another man shall be stoned to death.’ Just saying,” Kirk said.
“So, Ms. Rachel, you quote Leviticus 19, ‘love your neighbor as yourself,’ the chapter before affirms God’s perfect law when it comes to sexual matters.”
King later withdrew his remark in a follow-up X post. “I apologize for saying Charlie Kirk advocated stoning gays. What he actually demonstrated was how some people cherry-pick Biblical passages,” he wrote.
The backtrack arrived after several MAGA figures expressed outrage over King’s original comment.
“This is false and defamatory. It’s a statement made with reckless disregard for the truth. You should get sued for everything you’re worth over this,” Utah Sen. Mike Lee wrote.
White House senior director for counterterrorism Sebastian Gorka wrote: “When? You decrepit liar. Show us when Charlie ever said that. When you can’t, publicly apologize to his widow Erika, and Charlie’s children. But you can’t, can you, because you are a soulless ghoul who believed pouring your perversions into ‘novels’ would help you. It won’t.”
Fox News’ Laura Ingraham called King a “sad, bitter man” over his comments, while Texas Sen. Ted Cruz called the author a “horrible, evil, twisted liar.”
The Daily Beast has contacted King for comment.
Kirk, a hugely influential figure in the MAGA movement, was shot and killed while speaking at his “American Comeback Tour” event at Utah Valley University on Wednesday.
King’s apology over his attack on Kirk arrives as The Long Walk, the latest movie adaptation of one of his books, gets its cinematic release on Friday.
The book, which was written under his pseudonym Richard Bachman, is among more than 50 works by King that have appeared on the big screen.
