Hilarie Burton says she quit Hallmark project over execs’ refusal to include LGBTQ characters

Hallmark has been hit with more claims that it resisted diversity by actress Hilarie Burton, one of the many people to speak out since the network retracted an ad featuring a same sex wedding this week. 

In a series of tweets on Sunday, Burton – who is best known for her role as Peyton Sawyer in One Tree Hill – revealed that she walked away from a job with the network in January after bosses refused to meet her demands for more diversity.  

Burton said she’d asked that an LGBTQ character and an interracial couple be included in the script but that she was told no. 

Actress Hilarie Burton revealed on Sunday how she abandoned a Hallmark job after executives refused to make it more diverse

When she said she was uncomfortable with the lack of diversity, she alleges the network told her to ‘take it or leave it’. 

She abandoned the project, and the paycheck, as a matter of principal, she said.  

‘Just going through some old emails from a #Hallmark job I was “let go” from back in January. 

‘I had insisted on a LGBTQ character, an interracial couple and diverse casting. I was polite, direct and professional. 

‘But after the execs gave their notes on the script and NONE of my requests were honored, I was told “take it or leave it”. 

‘I left it. And the paycheck. Sh***y being penalized for standing up for inclusivity. 

‘I really wanted that job. It was close to my house. 

‘It paid really well. It was about the military, which you all know I hold dear. But? 

‘Id walk away again in a heartbeat. The bigotry comes from the top and permeates the whole deal over there. 

‘I’ve been loudly cheering for @lifetimetv all year because they heard my concerns + RALLIED! You want inclusive Christmas magic?! We got it. Love is love.’ 

She went on to say that she was lucky to have had the option to walk away when others do not.

‘Key point here: I have a wonderful husband who works his a** off so I have the luxury to choose morals over paying bills. 

‘Not everyone has that! Nor should we be forced to be dependent. If I had to cover our mortgage and was told “take it or leave it”, I’d be f*****d,’ she said. 

Burton said she was lucky to be able to turn down the job because her husband, fellow actor Jeffrey Dean, was able to pay their bills for them

Hallmark announced in a statement on Sunday that the commercial for wedding planning site Zola, which showed two women kissing at the altar, will be put back on the air, days after it was removed following a complaint from conservative group One Million Moms

Celebrities were quick to condemn the network for its decision to pull the ad and a hashtag ‘Boycott Hallmark’ trended  

Burton stars in A Christmas Wish on Lifetime. She is married to fellow actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan. 

Her criticism of Hallmark is the latest in a chorus since the family-focused network pulled a commercial which featured an all-female couple getting married. 

The ad was for wedding website Zola. It shows two women kissing on their wedding day.

After conservative lobbying group One Million Moms complained about it, Hallmark pulled it from the air. 

The decision was met with outrage. Among those to call the network out for the bigotry was Ellen DeGeneres. 

Hallmark, after the wave of criticism, announced it planned to put the commercial back on its channel. 

It has also apologized for the decision. 

One Million Moms encouraged people to boycott Hallmark until it pulled the ad