Angels and Demons not anti-Catholic: Ron Howard

Oscar-winning director Ron Howard responds to criticism that his highly anticipated film Angels & Demons unfairly portrays the Roman Catholic Church. In an article written for The Huffington Post, Howard goes on to say that religious criticism of the film is unwarranted because it is clearly a work of fiction.

In an article for The Huffington Post, Howard writes that William Donohue of the Catholic League is on a mission "to paint me and the movie I directed, Angels & Demons, as anti-Catholic." Howard says Donohue is selling a booklet, in which he asserts that the director and others involved in the movie "do not hide their animus against all things Catholic."

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"Let me be clear: neither I nor Angels & Demons are anti-Catholic. And let me be a little controversial: I believe Catholics, including most in the hierarchy of the Church, will enjoy the movie for what it is: an exciting mystery, set in the awe-inspiring beauty of Rome."

Howard goes on to say that religious criticism of the film is unwarranted because it is clearly a work of fiction. "Mr. Donohue's booklet accuses us of lying when our movie trailer says the Catholic Church ordered a brutal massacre to silence the Illuminati centuries ago. It would be a lie if we had ever suggested our movie is anything other than a work of fiction (if it were a documentary, our talk of massacres would have referenced the Inquisition or the Crusades)."