John C. Reilly Rips Conservatives' Criticism Of Empathy In Viral Rant: 'Empathy Is A Superpower'

Newly minted trillionaire Elon Musk has made his feelings about empathy clear. His selfish mindset is shared by many conservatives that hold men like Musk and MAGA Republican President Donald Trump in high esteem.

In a 2025 appearance on Joe Rogan's podcast, Musk claimed empathy was a weakness, stating:

"The fundamental weakness of Western civilization is empathy. The empathy exploit. They're exploiting a bug in Western civilization, which is the empathy response."

But actor John C. Reilly has a difficult time understanding their viewpoint. Appearing on the It's Open with Ilana Glazer podcast, the Oscar-nominated actor shared his own opinion about empathy.

Referencing a Musk quote about empathy, Reilly stated:

"If you stand up for human rights, why is that a right or left thing? Why aren’t people on the right wing concerned about human rights? They’re human too. Elon Musk says 'don’t be fooled by the empathy trap.'"

"Empathy is not a trap—empathy is a superpower. It's what makes human beings exceptional, our ability to look outside of ourselves. We're not an alligator trying to just get the next fish."

You can watch Reilly's comments on empathy here:

The actor continued:

"'Do unto others,' you know, 'Treat your brother as you would treat yourself.' It's crazy that we have to argue for these things right now. That's a really upside-down world feeling for me."

People appreciated Reilly's take on both empathy and Musk and his ilk.

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Reilly's upcoming projects include the heist film How to Rob a Bank, the Italian Western Heads or Tails?, and the Apple TV+ thriller Sponsor.

Reilly, who did all of his own singing in his parody film Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, is also taking his acclaimed vaudeville and music stage show Mister Romantic on tour across the United States.

You can watch Reilly's full 40-minute podcast appearance with host Ilana Glazer below:

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