Which Celebrities Joined The 'No Kings' March? Pedro Pascal, Kerry Washington, Glenn Close And More Spotted At Anti-Trump Protests

'No Kings' drew Hollywood into the streets as demonstrators and stars marched side by side against what they called authoritarianism.

Millions of protesters turned out across the United States on 18 October 2025 for the second nationwide 'No Kings' day of action, and among them were a raft of high-profile actors, presenters and filmmakers who posted photos, reels and short statements from the marches.

The day combined choreographed street theatre, political speeches and a visible celebrity presence that organisers said helped amplify an already vast mobilisation. While the protests were peaceful in most places, the scale and the involvement of well-known figures sharpened both public attention and political pushback.

A-List Presence: Who Was Seen on the Front Lines

Pedro Pascal, Kerry Washington and Glenn Close were among the celebrities photographed and filmed at marches in Los Angeles, New York and elsewhere, sharing images and short clips on their official social channels that underpinned media coverage.

Pascal's attendance in Los Angeles was documented in multiple Instagram reels and posts showing him chanting, dancing and posing with signs; fans and local outlets posted footage that circulated widely online.

Kerry Washington, who has a history of public political engagement, posted photos and a video from a New York march, celebrating the energy on the ground while urging followers to keep involved. Her caption and reel emphasised collective action rather than personality-led spectacle.

Glenn Close shared an image of herself holding a hand-made placard that read, in part, 'No oligarchs. No dictators. No despots. No autocrats. No kings!!', a succinct declaration that many stars echoed across platforms on the day.

Other industry figures, from Jimmy Kimmel to Robert De Niro and Spike Lee, either attended local rallies or publicly voiced support in posts and statements.

Political Stakes and Organisers' Claims

Organisers of the 'No Kings' movement said the October action was significantly larger than the first mass day in June, claiming turnout in the millions across more than 2,600 events, figures that, if accurate, would place the mobilisation among the largest single-day protests in recent US history.

Independent tallies and city police estimates vary by locality, but the nationwide sweep of events and the visual scale of many rallies made the claim plausible to many analysts.

The political context helps explain the celebrity interest: the movement frames itself as a defence of democratic norms and a response to perceived executive overreach.

For public figures, the decision to attend appears to have been driven by a mix of personal conviction, solidarity signalling and the recognition that high visibility can push issues into mainstream coverage.

Backlash and The White House Response

The mass demonstrations produced predictable political pushback. President Trump responded on social media with an AI-altered video that mocked protesters by depicting himself in a jet marked 'King Trump', a stunt that media outlets described as provocative and that generated further debate about the use of synthetic media in political contests.

The administration's tone hardened in some quarters, while Republican leaders denounced the rallies as unpatriotic.

Despite the flash of star power, most of the day's public record is human: teachers, veterans, immigrant families, activists and first-time marchers gave interviews and footage that grounded the event in concrete grievances and hopes.

The substantive result of the day will be judged not by the faces at the front but by whether the mobilisation translates into policy pressure and sustained civic engagement. For now, the images of stars like Pascal, Washington and Close walking shoulder-to-shoulder with ordinary Americans are the clearest metric of how culture and politics intersect in the streets.

'No Kings' was both a political event and a cultural moment, and the celebrities who attended made sure it reached an audience beyond the marchers themselves.

Originally published on IBTimes UK