Jared Padalecki Faces Backlash for Supporting Perez Hilton Amid Controversy

Jared Padalecki is walking back his public support of Perez Hilton amid his recent hospitalization after receiving criticism online. “I didn’t know. It’s been brought to my attention,” Padalecki, 44, wrote via X on Sunday, August 9. “I’m sorry ❤️.” Hours earlier, the Supernatural alum uploaded a social media message “wishing [Hilton] well” after the celebrity blogger, 48, shared a disturbing livestream in which he engaged in apparent acts of self-harm, prompting authorities to respond to his Miami home. Hilton was admitted to a local hospital on Tuesday, August 4, authorities received multiple 911 calls from fans and family members concerned about the influencer’s wellbeing. He was hospitalized and placed on a 72-hour emergency mental health evaluation as he recovers and seeks treatment — including surgery — for his injuries.

Social media users subsequently criticized Padalecki for allegedly supporting Hilton, given the blogger’s past bullying and targeting of various celebrities and their families. Padalecki quietly deleted his message amid the backlash. “To give more detail re: my post wishing someone well. I had ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA about his past,” the actor tweeted in a follow-up message shared on Sunday. “I had heard of him. Obviously. I had heard that he hadn’t exactly ‘been kind’ to me in the past. So, my thought is always to give grace and forgiveness to those who may have tried to ‘harm’ you … in my experience, it usually works out better than holding a grudge or wishing punishment on someone else.”

He continued, “That having been said, I TRULY didn’t know ANYTHING about the extent to what he has done. That’s my bad. On my life, I have never in my life, not once, looked him up or gone to one of his sites. I simply thought he was a ‘tabloid’ type of sensationalist journalist.”