James Wood calls Cracker Barrel's LGBTQ+ Alliance "cancer rotting the soul of a cherished restaurant chain" amid logo change backlash

The Specialist actor James Wood made yet another controversial remark. This time he reacted to Cracker Barrel's LGBTQ+ Alliance. On August 22, the actor shared a tweet in which he called the alliance "cancer rotting the soul" of the restaurant chain. The tweet by Wood read,

"So this, of course, is the cancer rotting the soul of a cherished restaurant chain with a wholesome Americana theme. It's always this sh*t. Always."

This initiative was taken by the American restaurant chain and gift store seemingly to extend support to the queer community. The tweet by Wood garnered more than 140K views as well as over 11K likes since it was uploaded. The comment section seemed divided. While some appeared to agree with James Wood's take, others questioned him.

Some netizens even thought that at this pace, Cracker Barrel was going to lose customers. The user wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter,

"Looks like Cracker Barrel is going to be losing a lot of customers with this sh*t. They better remove the CEO and fast."

Another one tweeted,

"Sad, was a great old timer feel restaurant."

A lot of netizens were of the belief that there was an old American feel to the restaurant chain, and the new initiatives seemed out of place. The controversial tweet by Wood surfaced around the same time that the restaurant chain was facing backlash about changing its old logo.

The announcement about the new logo was made by the brand on Monday, and people have not been taking it positively since then. The decision garnered backlash from many, particularly the conservatives who felt that the new logo was missing the old charm. As far as Wood's comments were concerned, this wasn't the first time that he had passed questionable remarks publicly.

What is the controversy surrounding the logo of Cracker Barrel?

As previously mentioned, on Monday, Cracker Barrel announced that they were going for a logo change. The text-only logo had been in place since 1969. The brand has, however, confirmed in a Monday press conference that the new logo "rooted even more closely to the iconic barrel shape and word mark that started it all."

According to reports by Forbes dated August 21, the new logo surfaced about a year after the restaurant chain began making changes to its branding. The outlet stated that they had opted for changing the design of several restaurants into more modern ones to attract different types of customers. While Cracker Barrel had been trying to accommodate new customers by rebranding, conservatives haven't been liking it.

On August 20, Donald Trump Jr. took to X and reacted to the logo change as well as the LGBTQ+ alliance that prompted James Wood's reaction too. Trump Jr. tweeted, 

"WTF is wrong with @CrackerBarrel??!"

According to Forbes, as of 10 am EDT on Thursday, the shares of this restaurant chain fell more than 11%. Meanwhile, in a statement given to Forbes, the restaurant chain stated that the heart and soul of the brand had not been altered. The outlet added that Uncle Herschel, who had been on the former logo, "remains front and center in our restaurants and on our menu."

Country singer John Rich, who had been a strong Trump supporter, also bashed Cracker Barrel. In a tweet dated Wednesday, August 20, 2025, Rich wrote,

"Will you go to Cracker Barrel now that it's going woke? This could be a "Bud Light" moment in the making..."

This tweet went massively viral and was viewed more than 2 million times. It was also liked by over 40K netizens. Many netizens happened to agree with Rich and expressed their frustration about Cracker Barrel. In the aforementioned rebranding, the restaurant chain is also reportedly bringing back some of its most popular dishes.

When was Cracker Barrel established?

Cracker Barrel was founded in September 1969 and has been a Southern-style restaurant. The headquarters of the restaurant chain is in Lebanon County, Tennessee. While the initial locations of these restaurants were near the Interstate Highway exits, they have expanded to multiple locations.

As of 2024, the restaurant chain has more than 600 stores across the United States. The decor of the restaurants was usually old-fashioned, and they would often partner with country musicians as well. In July 2025, Southern Living published an article citing some favorite items at the restaurant chain, recommended by the regulars.

This reportedly included Momma’s Pancake Breakfast, Old Timer’s Breakfast, Apple Cider and Apple Butter, Country Vegetable Plate, Chicken & Rice, Spicy Grilled Catfish, as well as Country Fried Steak.

According to a press release dated August 19, Cracker Barrel had been partnering with country musician Jordan Davis in order to celebrate their 55th anniversary. Cracker Barrel had not yet responded to the statement given by James Wood.