Actor Brian Cox, known for roles in “Succession,” “The Bourne Identity,” and “Braveheart,” had some harsh words against faith and the Bible while on “The Starting Line” Podcast. “Religion does hold us back because it’s belief systems which are outside ourselves. They’re not dealing with who we are. We’re dealing with, ‘Oh if God says this and God does that,’ and you go, ‘Well what is God?’ We’ve created that idea of God, and we’ve created it as a control issue, and it’s also a patriarchal issue,” he said. He pointed to mistreatment against women going all the way back to Genesis and the story of Adam and Eve. “We have to honor [women], and we have to give them their place and we’re resistant to that because it’s Adam and Eve. I mean, the propaganda goes right way back. The Bible is one of the worst books ever, for me, from my point of view. Because it starts with the idea that out of Adam’s rib, this woman was created, and [people will] believe it cause they’re stupid enough.”

He said people need religion but that it’s not truth. “It’s mythology,” he said. He appeared to believe that belief systems would keep peace from ever being achieved in the Israel-Hamas war. “It’s all about this notion of God, the idea that there’s a God that takes care of us all. There’s no such thing. It’s about us, and we don’t examine ourselves nearly enough. We don’t look at who we are. We’re always looking outside of ourselves, instead of looking inside ourselves.” He attributed “all kinds of horrors” to religion, including the Holocaust and the war in Ukraine. “People are so stupid… and they cannot see the writing on the wall,” he said. Oddly enough, “writing on the wall” is a phrase attributed to the Biblical story of Daniel when mysterious writing appears on a wall as an omen in chapter 5.

Cox’s comments were met with backlash. Conservative commentator Dick Delingpole posted the interview with Cox, writing “It’s almost as if we shouldn’t look to actors for their towering intellect and insight.” The Media Research Center said Cox’s statement “does what a portion of Atheists do- crap on those that do have faith, because they’re too ‘stupid’ to have a comprehension of something bigger than themselves.” The Washington Times reached out to McDonald’s for a comment on Cox’s words. Cox has been the spokesman for McDonalds some time, however to date the burger giant has not responded to any questions.