Steven Seagal Dubbed 'Bond Villain' While Calling NFL Protests 'Disgusting'

Actor Steven Seagal gave Twitter a reason to drag him after he denounced the ongoing NFL protests Wednesday. Segal, 65, voiced his thoughts during a "Good Morning Britain" interview.

Seagal, who rarely makes public appearances, spoke via a live broadcast from Moscow, Russia. Things went awry when he criticized the "disgusting" behavior of individuals participating in the ongoing protests.

"I think it's outrageous, I think it's a joke, it's disgusting. I respect the American flag," Seagal said during the live broadcast. "I myself have risked my life countless times for the American flag and I don't understand or agree with this kind of behavior. I think it's an outrage."

Twitter wasn't amused with Seagal's dismissal. The actor was quickly castigated for the remarks. Several users targeted the actor's appearance: a dyed black widow's peak haircut, goatee, black jacket and black-framed glasses.

Others claimed Seagal looks like the next James Bond villain.

And some users directly targeted the actor's career or denounced his remarks completely.

Very few people, however, defended Seagal's comments.

Seagal addressed the importance of free speech during his "Good Morning Britan" appearance. The actor, however, said free speech has no place in the football arena.

"I believe in free speech, I believe that everyone's entitled to their own opinion," Seagal said. "But I don't agree that they should hold the United States of America or the world hostage by taking a venue where people are tuning in to watch a football game and imposing their political views."

The "Under Siege" actor, who is now a Russian citizen, also defended President Donald Trump. Seagal said that supporters of former Presiden Barack Obama make it "very difficult" for Trump to accomplish anything.

"We have these, you know, democrats that have this whole other agenda...this whole group of leftover Obama-ites and people who feel that they should really sort of, kind of, overthrow Trump and any decisions he makes, anything that he tries to do, he gets blocked so often from, you know, sort of the enemies within," Seagal said in Trump's defence.

Trump has been very outspoken in his disapproval of the NFL protests that have occurred during the National Anthem. He tweeted about the protests Sunday, saying, "The NFL has all sorts of rules and regulations. The only way out for them is to set a rule that you can't kneel during our National Anthem!"

Trump's criticism of the NFL protests has elicited responses from notable names, including George Clooney, Stevie Wonder, Michael Rappaport, John Legend and Congresswoman Sheila Jackson, among others.

"I think the NFL is in a box. I think they're in a really bad box," Trump told reporters outside the White House Wednesday. "You look at what's happening with their ratings. You look at what's happening going...frankly the only thing that's doing well for the NFL is the pregame, because everyone wants to see what's going on. The NFL is in a very bad box. You cannot have people disrespecting our national anthem, our flag, our country, and that's what they're doing."

Trump added, "In my opinion, the NFL has to change, or you know what's going to happen? Their business is going to go to hell."

Contrary to Trump's claim, the NFL's ratings saw a three percent spike during its third week compared to the 2016 season, USA Today reported Wednesday. This counters Trump's declaration.