Were two women who raised as sisters able to stay connected while disagreeing about some of the most controversial issues in Hollywood? The response for actresses Jodie Sweetin and Candace Cameron Bure is complex and based on mutual respect.
Discussing this on the December 16th edition of the podcast ‘The Moment,’ Sweetin looked back on the decades-long friendship she shared with her former *Full House* cast member. “She was the closest thing I had to a sister. We fought like sisters, even when we were kids, that’s the relationship we had,” Sweetin, now 43, explained. Sweetin admitted that her friend’s religion is always “has always been at the forefront for her” and stated she had “I have zero problem with that” with it.
Sweetin also has her own opinions, which widely differ from those of Bure on matters such as LGBTQ+ rights and women’s reproductive rights. “I have no problem with religion if it brings you peace and happiness.” She removed all ambiguity regarding her opinion with her next statement: “I do know that I don’t think you can truly love people if you don’t respect them. I think if you don’t respect people enough to allow them the same rights of marriage, of bodily autonomy and all those things, then I don’t think that you can truly love someone. It’s some sort of weird pity, and it’s not love.”
These differences became evident in 2022 when Bure publicly announced her move to Great American Family after leaving Hallmark, explaining her reasons as her “core.” In her interview with *The Wall Street Journal*, Bure said she wanted to work with “Christians that love the Lord and wanted to promote faith programming and good family entertainment.” Hallmark, meanwhile, was preparing to debut its first holiday film with a same-sex romance, *The Holiday Sitter*.
The move sparked backlash from celebrities and LGBTQ+ advocates. JoJo Siwa, who had previously clashed with Bure, condemned the decision on Instagram, calling it “rude and hurtful to a whole community of people.” Sweetin publicly supported Siwa, commenting, “You know I love you ❤️.” She also shared resources from GLAAD and Transanta to encourage donations and legislative support for LGBTQ+ rights.
While Sweetin has been “always loud” about her beliefs, she noted that Bure prefers to keep politics out of her brand. “If there’s people who don’t like what I’m saying or are like, ‘I like you as Stephanie but I don’t like you as you.’ It’s, like, ‘Great, watch *Full House* and don’t follow me online.’ It’s OK, you don’t have to like me,” Sweetin explained. “Candace and I are very different in that regard.”
Bure, for her part, has defended her position with equal conviction. “The Bible says to go out into the world and share the good news with others, to share the gospel,” she told *Us Weekly*. “To deny that in any part of my life would be denying the very thing that I’m so appreciative of, which is Jesus. I cannot separate those two things, and so I walk boldly in that.” She added, “I’m a fighter, man. I just keep getting back up and do the work I want to do… I have an audience of one, and that’s God.”
