DC boss James Gunn has addressed a controversial tweet from Zachary Levi that called into question the "Shazam!" star's position on vaccines.

On Saturday, Levi tweeted "Hardcore agree" in response to someone who asked whether people consider pharmaceutical company Pfizer "a real danger to the world." Levi's tweet has since ignited a debate as to whether the onscreen superhero is against corruption in the pharmaceutical industry or Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine.

"Actors and filmmakers that I work with are going to say things that I agree with and things that I don't agree with," Gunn said Monday during a press event on the Warner Bros. studio lot, according to Variety.

"That's going to happen. I don't have a list of things that somebody should say because of what I think. And you know, I can't be changing my plans all the time because an actor says something that I don't agree with."

The film executive and director added, however, that "if somebody's doing something morally reprehensible then that's a different story."

"We have to take all that stuff into account," he said. "It's a balance. It's a modern world and it's a different place."

Shortly after raising eyebrows with his anti-Pfizer stance, Levi tweeted a link to a 2009 press release from the Department of Justice announcing that the United States government had reached a $2.3 billion settlement with Pfizer "to resolve criminal and civil liability arising from the illegal promotion of certain pharmaceutical products."

"Just one example of what I'm referring to…" Levi tweeted along with a pensive-face emoji.

While some interpreted Levi's follow-up tweet as proof of his disdain for Pfizer the pharmaceutical giant (not the COVID vaccine), others speculated that the "Chuck" alum found and shared the old DOJ press release in a desperate attempt to mitigate the damage caused by his original tweet.

Representatives for Levi have not responded to requests for comment from the Los Angeles Times.

...continued

©2023 Los Angeles Times. Visit latimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.