Dolly Parton's costar sparks backlash with 'tone deaf' tribute just hours after her death
As the world grieves the loss of arguably one of America's greatest ever stars, a former colleague has sparked outrage online.
On Tuesday (August 25) news broke that that the iconic hitmaker had passed away at the age of 80, with the country singer confirmed to have died following a brief and private battle with cancer.
While tributes from massive stars flooded social media, Ricky Schroder - who played her father in the musical drama about the Jolene singer's life, Dolly Parton's Coat of Many Colors - controversially took to Instagram.
His post featured a photograph of himself alongside the '9-to-5' hitmaker, captioned: "I didnt agree with her advocating for Transgender & Covid Vaccine support…but Loved her anyway. Thank you for choosing me Dolly to be your Movie Daddy."
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Fans blasted the actor in the comments, with one penning: "Just when I thought there was no one lower than our current president, you just took the cake. How can anything say anything tacky about Dolly. One of the most loving people ever. Something you could use more of. You’re in my prayers Ricky."
While another added: "'I loved her anyway' what a strange tribute. Good Lord."
"Imagine being the first (and probably only) person in the whole world to post something negative about Dolly. NOT COOL," a third added.
But Schroder didn't stop there. He then took to his Instagram Story to criticize the late star for her involvement in encouraging people to get vaccinated during the height of Covid-19.
"I warned Dolly to not support the Experiment. Wished she listened," he wrote.
Her nephew confirmed the devastating news about Parton's passing in an Instagram video on Tuesday.
"My name is Bryan Seaver, son of Cassie Parton," he said in the video statement.
"I am representing the Parton and Owens family today, announcing the passing of my Aunt, Dolly Rebecca Parton Dean.
"This video announcement is something Dolly asked of me years ago before I fully absorbed it as a future reality."
Prior to her passing, the beloved country icon spent her final days putting on a brave face while fighting the devastating illness.
She completed a heartbreaking interview with People magazine just days before her death. During it, she discussed her changing physical condition, revealing she had been experiencing some underlying health issues that she pushed to one side as she tended to her husband of nearly 60 years, Carl Dean.
"I am dealing with some health issues that I just didn't pay attention to when I was watching over Carl," she admitted to the publication.
However, the resilient star insisted she still had plenty of fight left in her
"You know me, as I've often said, I've dreamed myself into a corner and I still have so many things I want to achieve," Parton added.
Following her death, it was revealed she will be laid to rest at Woodlawn Memorial Park beside her beloved husband - who tragically passed away in March last year.
Joe Yates