US representative Tim Burchett has threatened to force Netflix executives to testify in front of congress following a row over the inclusion of a trans character in Dead End: Paranormal Park.
Appearing on right-wing pundit Benny Johnson’s podcast, Tennessee Republican Burchett was asked, regarding a clip of trans character Barney going viral: “Would you be in favour of the Netflix leadership being asked to testify for this?”
Burchett responded: “Here’s what I want to do on this one because the First Amendment and all that is involved in it. I’m gonna follow up with my folks, after we get off. I’m gonna call them and say ‘Which committee can they be brought in front of’.
“We have to look at who regulates the FCC [regulator the Federal Communications Commission], and since it’s cable, does that count? I don’t know. We need to find out what their agenda is, and why they’re pushing this stuff because from what I understand, that… is the number-one-rated cartoon.
“That is recruiting,” he said of trans representation on the show. “That is grooming, that is the worst of the worst because they’re taking young minds, and they know they can do that.”
He also claimed to know gay people who were “ticked off” about being “lumped in” with the “fight” for trans rights.
— NO CONTEXT VIDEOS (@Viralvid_89) October 3, 2025
At the end of last month, Elon Musk announced on X/Twitter that he had cancelled his Netflix subscription after Libs of TikTok criticised the trans-inclusive show, which ended two years ago.
Hamish Steele’s animated series has been at the centre of right-wing calls to boycott Netflix, with hard-line Gays Against Groomers, as well as Libs of Tiktok, claiming it “pushes trans ideology”.
The backlash has prompted Zach Barack, who provided the voice for Barney, a gay, trans teen boy who finds a new job as a security guard at an amusement park with a haunted house, to claim the character had “saved lives”.
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