Serena Williams Backed By Quinta Brunson While Slamming Harrison Butker At ESPY

Serena Williams, Venus Williams, and Quinta Brunson took on Harrison Butker on stage at the 2024 ESPY Awards.

The tennis legend, who took to the award stage as host in the company of her sister, and the iconic actress called out Butker on his controversial statement trivializing women's role in society.

Harrison Butker must have been shocked when Serena Williams ripped into him with the help of Quinta Brunson while honoring women's sports at the event on Thursday night in front of a fully packed audience.

The power trio appeared on stage dressed to the nine and immediately got to the business of the night, one of which involved sending a clear message to the Kansas City Chiefs kicker.

As they addressed the audience, Venus declared, "So, go ahead and enjoy women's sports like you would any other sports because they are sports," as Serena added, "Except you, Harrison Butker. We don't need you," while Brunson closed the deal by saying "At all. Like, ever."

TMZ reported that the interesting exchange happened right in front of Butker, who sat in the audience and was photographed arriving at the awards show earlier in the evening. However, his immediate reaction was not shown on the screen.

The Blast reported that the football star's commencement speech at Benedictine College in Kansas went viral in May for all the wrong reasons. 

Butker encouraged female college graduates to become homemakers and raise children. He referred to his spouse as a homemaker, perhaps in a bid to sound more convincing, and declared:

"I can tell you that my beautiful wife, Isabelle, would be the first to say her life truly started when she began living her vocation as a wife and as a mother…But it cannot be overstated that all of my success is made possible because a girl I met in band class back in middle school would convert to the faith, become my wife, and embrace one of the most important titles of all: Homemaker."

The NFL star did not stop there; he also took a jab at the LGBTQ+ community by calling their pride "deadly sins" and criticized President Joe Biden's decision to legalize abortion, adding that bad policies and poor leadership had "negatively impacted major life issues."

He concluded his speech by encouraging men to embrace their masculinity, fight "against the cultural emasculation of men," and "never settle for what is easy."

This statement instantly caused controversy on all social media platforms, as users condemned his beliefs and encouraged graduates to aim higher in their various fields.

The former Kansas City commissioner, Justice Horn, issued a disclaimer on X following the statement stating that Butker does not represent Kansas City, as the team has always welcomed, affirmed, and embraced the LGBTQ+ community members.

Another person wrote, "Harrison Butker, I hope you miss every kick this season & you are hereby banished from the Swiftie-Chiefs Kingdom alliance," in reference to the athlete using a line from teammate's girlfriend Taylor Swift's hit single "Bejeweled" in his speech.

This visibly upset X user suggested the athlete "should stick to kicking a ball and shut the f—k up then. You know, like "know his place"?

Despite the pushback following his statement, the catholic stood by his views and reiterated his love for catholicism and traditional American values.

The Blast also reported that the 2024 speech immediately exposed a similar statement Butker made last year to the Georgia Tech graduating class where he said:

"I'm not sure the root of this, but at least I can offer one controversial antidote that I believe will have a lasting impact for generations to come: get married and start a family. Identity politics have caused us to look at one another through a prism of hate and lack of respect for the human person."

He added that the days of "seeing the value of others may be gone," and freedom of thought has been replaced by cancel culture for those who disagree with the current trends and ideologies.

The 28-year-old, who plays alongside Travis Kelce on the Kansas City Chiefs, is a three-time Super Bowl winner and has been seen adding religious verses and captions to his social media posts in the past.

Another member of the Chief's family and wife of the Chief's chairman and CEO cheered Butker's "family-oriented" beliefs, noting that she has always encouraged her daughters to be "highly educated and chase their dreams" while knowing "that they can do whatever they want (that honors God)."

Hunt added that studies have shown that committed, married couples with children, including herself, are the happiest. She emphasized that affirming motherhood, praising one's wife, and highlighting the sacrifice and dedication it takes to be a mother is not bigoted.

"It is empowering to acknowledge that a woman's hard work in raising children is not in vain. Countless highly educated women devote their lives to nurturing and guiding their children," noted Hunt as she encouraged society to celebrate families and cautioned against taking "things out of context."

While fans wait to catch a glimpse of Harrison Butker's reaction, the Williams sisters and Quinta Brunson certainly sent a strong message on that stage!