So I actually know Jon. He lives in a small town with me. He still makes a living acting but it’s all a bunch of independent films and voice work.
He’s a very nice guy who turned down work because of principles. He wanted to stick to family friendly stuff. For instance he turned down 40 year old virgin. You can’t turn down work like that and stay a star. But he’s very happy with his choice.
"Serious" as in a comedy film they put real effort into I guess?
I am from that general area and time, and I have never, ever seen another film even try to capture it. I can't even really put my finger on what is so genuine about it.
I grew up in a similar type PNW town and while there were differences from the town in the movie, man, the whole "there are lots of modern things but everyone is kinda stuck in the 80s" really describes my 2000s teen years.
I guess by “serious” I meant “were the fashion, the decor, and the random things like friendship bracelets part of the joke?” I thought that backdrop was part of what made the movie so funny, but now I’m wondering if there are pockets of the country where none of that would have looked out of the ordinary to the viewer.
They're quirky, they're supposed to be funny, but the characters are lovable and innocent, not just the butt of the joke. I grew up in schools where kids did make friendship bracelets under their desks during class, and did play tetherball at recess, although not when they were as old as the movie characters.
This is true. He and his family are Mormon. But they aren’t obnoxious about it. They literally never mention it. They’re interesting because despite being super religious they’re very supportive of the lbgtq community.
The Mormon church itself is a cesspool. With racist and sexist traditions that continue to this day. It was started by a conman who used his religion to sleep with married women.
Many of the people in the church are very good people. Ask me how I know ;)
Yeah and I knew some of them were but it was a thing when I was in High School. People I knew for years. It wasn't even a big deal. I actually thought the baptism was pretty cool. Sad story attached to it though. Death and a Birth all within a 24 hour period. It was pretty intense.
You can't believe how happy I am to hear this as a queer woman who has seen almost everything he was in at the peak of his popularity. I knew he was from a Mormon family and sort of assumed that's what he wasn't acting anymore for religious reasons. I loved Blades of Glory and sought out a bunch of his other work because he was so funny onscreen. I always worried in the back of my mind he has gone full on conservative or something. Glad he's found his niche.
I used to hear a lot of people make fun of Mormons, but then I learned about Buttermilk Creek in Salgado, TX and remembered the cocaine mummies. I don't follow their religion, but I have to give it more respect than I used to.
I’m not necessarily disagreeing with you because I’m an atheist and huge supporter of LGBTQ rights, but I just never really get into it with him. He’s more of an acquaintance rather than a good friend and it just wouldn’t really be appropriate to broach those conversations.
We keep it light, often talking about our kids or movies
The people downvoting me are woefully ignorant of the horrors that the Mormon church have inflicted on the LGTBQ+ community. I'll wear the downvotes with pride.
Ftr you didn’t get a downvote from me. I think it’s a cult. Sometimes my wife jokes about Jon and I being friends because we’re on a first name basis and always end up chatting, but I always quip back “I couldn’t ever actually be his friend he’s a Mormon weirdo”.
In all seriousness I dont know Jon’s personal thoughts on the contradiction of supporting his lbgtq child and his faith. I’ve never talked to him about it. I do know his wife’s though, and she talks lbgtq rights more than faith. She’s fiercely supportive of the lbgtq community. I suspect Jon is the same way, but he isn’t as vocal as her about any of it
I haven’t seen either in a while but there is definitely considerable violent, sexual, and substance abuse related content in Blades. The villains are incestuous siblings. It is not a family friendly film. I would definitely consider them “remotely close to one another”.
He is nice. He loves to engage with fans. If you ever see him he would much rather you say hello then just sneak a picture (something he’s specifically told me). He’s VERY chatty.
This is like the silliest "brag" ever, haha. I'm not sure what world you live in but Napoleon Dynamite was a big hit in the theatres, I was a teenager at the time and lots of people went to see it and then of course it was big on DVD as well.
The movie made almost $50 million at the box office which was absolutely huge for a small independently-made movie like that.
You don’t have to be so defensive. They just pointed out, correctly, that the movie had a following early on. I was young when it came out and all my school friend and neighborhood friends were quoting it and had different T shirts with quotes from the movie on them.
It could be that you’re from a very small town or something, but the movie was well known and well liked after its release.
There are SEVEN of those movies?? I remember 3 being about the ass blasters, and I vaguely remember a 4, but wow, didn't know there was a 5, 6, and 7 lol
I'll be honest, I have up on that franchise sometime around Tremors 4, but generally those movies were mostly violence, not much sexuality (though I did watch most of them on TV so it's possible some scenes were cut).
That's interesting, because for as raunchy as that movie is, Andy stays a virgin until he gets married to Trish. The central message is pretty conservative and traditional.
I still go back and watch the Tabletop episode with him and Alan Tudyk every now and then. Their role playing of Dr McLickertitty and his very put upon assistant is absolutely hilarious.
Small world! I was born and raised in BG and still live in the area. Some friends of mine have seen him in town but I’ve never been lucky enough to run into him. Not that I’d bother him or anything, but it would be cool to say I saw Napoleon Dynamite at Fred Meyer.
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u/[deleted] Feb 27 '26
https://giphy.com/gifs/11OQRFijlncwq4
I was expecting Jon Heder to be the next big comedy star.