Tim Allen says Erika Kirk's memorial speech inspired him to forgive his father's killer
Actor credits Erika Kirk's forgiveness at her husband's funeral with prompting a personal moment of reconciliation decades in the making.
Tim Allen says Erika Kirk's memorial remarks moved him to forgive the man who killed his father, a moment he described as deeply affecting. He wrote on X that he was personally touched by Erika Kirk's choice to forgive the person who killed her husband, Charlie Kirk, and that forgiveness has not come easily to him after more than six decades since his father's death. Allen's father died in 1978 after a drunk-driving crash when Allen was 11 years old.
'When Erika Kirk spoke the words on the man who killed her husband: That man… that young man… I forgive him.' That moment deeply affected me, Allen wrote.
At Charlie Kirk's memorial service, Erika publicly forgave Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old accused of killing the Turning Point USA founder. Our Savior said, Father, forgive them, for they not know what they do. That young man … I forgive him, Erika said, adding that Charlie would have wanted forgiveness to guide others.
Charlie Kirk was assassinated at a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, on Sept. 10. Robinson was arrested and faces multiple charges, including aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm, obstruction of justice, witness tampering, and a violent offense in the presence of a child.
'Charlie wanted to save young men, just like the one who took his life,' Erika Kirk said during the memorial, underscoring her late husband's public mission.
Allen's post about Erika Kirk's forgiveness has drawn broad attention on social media, with fans and fellow public figures praising the moment as a reminder of the power of mercy in public life.
Robinson's case remains under investigation, and authorities have not revealed a motive. The memorial and the statements by Erika Kirk and Tim Allen highlight a moment of public reflection amid a high-profile loss.
