David Byrne, Bon Jovi, Jamie Lee Curtis and more join US-wide No Kings protests against Trump

Millions of Americans took to the streets on October 18 to protest US President Donald Trump and his administration, including several stars of music and film.

The protests were part of the No Kings movement, with over 2,700 events across the United States drawing over 7 million protestors.

David Byrne joined a march in Philadelphia, reportedly stopping along the route to take photos and chat with fans.

A user on Bluesky posted a photo of the former Talking Heads frontman posing with a fan. The fan had decorated a sign with one of a quote from Byrne: "Love and acceptance are now 'punk ideologies.'"

David Byrne at #NoKings on his bike.

(via @wutangforchildren.bsky.social)

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— Carl Quintanilla (@carlquintanilla.bsky.social) October 18, 2025 at 8:43 PM

Byrne just wrapped up a three-night run of gigs in the city as part of his Who is the Sky Tour.

Ryan Godfrey, a 54-year-old software solutions engineer, told The Philadelphia Inquirer he had just attended one of the concerts and recognised Byrne during the protest.

"I said, 'Hi, I really appreciated your concert the other night. It was amazing; thank you so much for that,'" Godfrey said.

"[Byrne] said, 'Of course, thanks for enjoying it,' and then I said, 'And also thank you very much for being here today — this is very important, that you’re doing this.' And he said, 'Of course. I wanted to be here for this.'"

Jon Bon Jovi was also seen attending a march in his home state of New Jersey with a sign reading, "No Kings, no tyrants, no sycophants, no Trump."

 

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Comments on the post praised the 'Livin’ on a Prayer' singer, including one user calling him "as American as it gets."

"A true American does this when he sees the America he grew up in being sold," the comment read.

"[Bon Jovi] has given so much back with his morally and ethically solid rock band towards the music culture for many generations over."

The Last of Us actor Pedro Pascal joined the protest in Los Angeles and posted a series of photos on Instagram from the event.

 

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A post shared by Pedro Pascal he/him (@pascalispunk)

Two photos showed Pascal side by side with Isaac Bryan, Majority Leader of the California State Assembly and a featured speaker at the protest.

Pascal has frequently been vocal about his support for Gaza, LGBTQ+ rights, racial justice, women's rights and more.

Last month, Pascal was one of over 400 celebrities who signed a letter denouncing Disney's decision to suspend Jimmy Kimmel Live! following threats from US government officials over host Kimmel's commentary. The show was reinstated following public pressure and widespread claims of censorship.

Following the Jimmy Kimmel ordeal, Pascal and over 550 other big names in entertainment joined together to relaunch the Committee for the First Amendment, a McCarthy Era free speech initiative.

Actress and producer Jamie Lee Curtis also posted photos of herself at the No Kings protest on Instagram.

"In this world of abundance and BIG, BIGGER, BIGGEST, it doesn't matter if this was the MOST people ever turning out in protest, it just matters that we SHOWED UP, STOOD UP, said what we THINK and FEEL and now the HARD work," said Curtis in the caption of the post.

"We have a YEAR to send a real MESSAGE at the BALLOT BOX which is our AMERICAN VOICE, and so, let's get &$@KING BUSY."

 

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A post shared by Jamie Lee Curtis (@jamieleecurtis)

Star Wars star Mark Hamill took to Bluesky to share photos and thoughts from the protest, writing, "Thank you to everyone at the No Kings rallies for making your voices heard & being part of history. The massive crowds were joyful, passionate & spectacular!"

Thank you to everyone at the #NO_KINGS rallies for making your voices heard & being part of history.
The massive crowds were joyful, passionate & spectacular!

So were the signs...

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— Mark Hamill (@markhamillofficial.bsky.social) October 19, 2025 at 5:49 PM

He posted various photos of signs from the protest and added, "There were so many great signs, it's hard to pick a favorite!"

Hamill has criticised Trump and promoted the No Kings protests in various other posts on his social media. During the US presidential election last year, Hamill endorsed Democratic candidate Kamala Harris and her vice-presidential pick, Tim Walz.

BlacKkKlansman director Spike Lee attended the protest in New York City, posted a photo of a protest sign poking fun at Trump's Times cover with the words "TIME to go."

In the background, a billboard displays Lee modelling for a Timberland ad.

 

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A post shared by Spike Lee (@officialspikelee)

Sixteen Candles actor John Cusack attended the protest in Chicago, where he told local news, "The whole country was founded on no kings. We have masked goons [ICE] roaming the streets, hiding their faces, abducting people. Go to hell. If Trump thinks this place is gonna be a fascist hub, no chance."

"It’s all upsetting," Cusack told News 4.

"Seeing a sort of fascist authoritarian…cosplay that the right wing has been fooling around with for so long, seeing it devolve into the real thing is predictable, but deeply saddening."

Cusack also posted a series of photos from the protest on X.

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— John Cusack (@johncusack) October 18, 2025

Also participating in No Kings were singers Hayley Kiyoko and Sara Bareilles, who both posted photos from the protests on their respective Instagram stories.

Other celebrities seen attending protests included Kerry Washington, Glenn Close, Lance Bass, Debbie Allen, Jean Smart, Jeni Britton, Carrie Coon, Paul Schrader and Jennifer Welch.

Many more public figures spoke out in support of the No Kings protests.

Jimmy Kimmel shared an infographic on Instagram listing various examples of wordplay used on signage, referring to Trump as “Commander-in-Thief,” “Orange Julius Caesar” and “Uncle Scam.”

“When you’re making your #NoKings posters, remember… Donald Trump LOVES a good nickname,” wrote Kimmel in the caption.

 

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A post shared by Jimmy Kimmel (@jimmykimmel)

Mark Ruffalo took to Threads to express his support, writing, "Amazing. So many people love the USA and want NO KINGS!" On X, Ben Stiller reposted a photo from a protest in Long Island and wrote "Love This."

Morgan Freeman posted a video of a protest in Idaho on X, writing, "Trump tried to paint the No Kings Day protest as an anti-America protest. Well, this is conservative Idaho celebrating both America and No kings!!!"

BREAKING: Trump tried to paint the No Kings Day protest as an anti-America protest. Well, this is conservative Idaho celebrating both America and No kings!!!

pic.twitter.com/7P2wkKmuKg

— Morgan J. Freeman (@mjfree) October 18, 2025

Following the protests, Trump shared a bizzare AI-generated video on his social media platform Truth Social showing himself flying a fighter jet painted with the words "KING TRUMP" over various cities and bombing crowds of civilian protestors with feces.

The video was shared on multiple official government social media accounts. Vice President JD Vance also shared an AI video of Trump wearing a monarch's crown and cape.

The videos have been met with shock and disgust by social media users, who blasted Trump for suggesting the use of military violence against civilians peacefully exercising their right to protest.

"Trump’s AI fantasy of crowning himself King & dumping shit from a fighter jet is the most honest thing he’s ever posted," one X user wrote.

"He’s literally shitting on Americans because he doesn’t give a fuck about them. And the MAGA stupids will cheer it, calling it “patriotism.”

Another X user wrote, "Just to be clear, Americans, this is what Donald Trump thinks of you if you oppose him, protest, or simply ask questions."

Other social media users critisised Trump as "childish," "disgusting" and "pathetic" for the post.

Despite the video and previous comments by Trump and his allies referring to the protests as "Hate America rallies," a statement released on the No Kings website promised the movement would continue.

"Authoritarians want us to believe resistance is futile, but every person who turned out today proved the opposite," said Ezra Levin and Leah Greenberg, Co-Founders of Indivisible, in the statement.

"This movement isn’t about a single protest; it’s about a growing chorus of Americans who refuse to be ruled. Trump may want a crown, but in this country, there are no kings."

Deirdre Schifeling, chief political and advocacy officer for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), was also quoted in the statement, saying, "millions of people showed that we, the people, will not be silenced."

"We came together in community to do the most patriotic and American thing we can: exercising our First Amendment rights by peacefully and lawfully protesting President Trump’s abuses of power," Schifeling said.

"We’ll continue to channel the courage of today’s protests to keep showing up for our communities — and the ACLU will do everything in our power to defend our freedom of speech, press, and assembly. Despite the Trump administration’s threats, no president can take this cornerstone of our democracy away from us."

Saturday's No Kings protests drew an estimated 7 million attendees across all 50 states and Washington D.C..

There were also smaller events held at the US Embassy in Dublin and at Belfast City Hall, as well as several in the UK, Spain, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Sweden and more.

On its website, No Kings announced there would be a meeting on October 21 "to talk about what comes next."