Mandy Moore Faces Backlash For Posting GoFundMe When She’s Rich – But A Celeb Wildfire Victim Has Defended Her

Mandy Moore is one of many celebs who lost property in the devastating Los Angeles wildfires. Her home did actually remain standing, but was no longer livable, while her family’s music studio, garage, and guest house were gone.

“Feeling weird survivors guilt. We love this community and will do everything we can to help rebuild and support,” Moore wrote in a post.

But then the controversy started. On January 9, Moore posted a GoFundMe for her in-laws, who had like so many others lost everything in the fire. “Yesterday, my brother-in-law and sister-in-law Griff & Kit lost their home and everything they own in the Eaton Fire,” Moore wrote in the caption, as per Variety. “With their first baby on the way in a matter of weeks, they need our support now more than ever. Griff is a touring musician and lost his entire arsenal of drums/percussion he uses to make a living. It’s all so much. So many have asked how to help during this unimaginable and stressful time… Please consider donating and sharing to help them rebuild.”

People did not respond to this very well. Moore shouldn’t be asking anyone to “consider donating came the complaints,” because she was already rich. Plenty pointed out her page on Celebrity Net Worth, which lists her as being worth $14 million (however, online estimations of celebrity wealth are usually inaccurate). Others pointed to how she played a lead character in the TV show This Is Us, which was a massive success. Arguments raged on X, formerly known as Twitter, about whether Moore’s posting of the GoFundMe was appropriate.

Ok, at first I felt sorry for mandy moore and her family. But I didn't know she was pushing a go fund me to help her family when she's a multimillionaire and could be using her own money to help them. She's asking for $60K for her family. That's chump change for her. SMH 🤦‍♀️

— April Cousert (@Aprilcousert718) January 11, 2025

I get that there's a lot of nuance to the wildfire situation but you will *never* persuade me that multimillionaires like Mandy Moore deserve the working class' donations as financial backup, especially since ~90% of GFMs for people who actually need them never reach their goal. https://t.co/0EOXw0bs4F

— uncle tupelo (@blaisew_c) January 12, 2025

In a way, the debate wasn’t so much about Mandy Moore specifically as it was about rich people’s charity in general. Is it ever right for a rich person to ask others for money, even if that money would go to others?

Related: Whether Helping or Not, the Royal Family’s Response to LA Wildfires Sparks Controversy

That’s a question that won’t be answered anytime soon. But Moore soon noticed all the angry comments she was getting on Instagram and edited the post to reflect that. “People questioning whether we’re helping out our own family or attributing some arbitrary amount of money Google says someone has is NOT helpful or empathetic,” she wrote. “Of course we are. Our buddy Matt started this GoFundMe and I’m sharing because people have asked how they can help them. We just lost most of our life in a fire too. Kindly F OFF. No one is forcing you to do anything.”

The GoFundMe has now reached its goal – considerably more than its goal in fact – but criticism of Moore hasn’t slowed down. That’s caused someone who worked with her in the past to spring to her defense.

Reality TV star Spencer Pratt released a TikTok today criticizing those who were slamming Moore on social media. He began by talking about how he and Moore had worked together on a project on 2004 and she was “such a nice friend” to him. “If you’re nice in 2004, you’re still nice in 2025,” he said. “I’m talking so nice. So don’t you dare come for Mandy Moore.”

This is notable because Pratt actually did lose his house in the fires. The property he shared with wife Heidi Montag was completely gone, and he himself has a GoFundMe now, set up for him by friends. His own net worth is listed by Celebrity Net Worth as being $2 million – but again, this is likely inaccurate.

“Maybe delete your content about Mandy Moore because Mandy Moore is a real one,” Pratt said in his video. “She’s a great human. She’s not doing anything out of pocket – she’s posting GoFundMe’s, that’s great. She doesn’t have to pay for whoever.” And in the comments of the video, there were a few deviations from that point of view.

The debate will likely continue on, but hopefully, all the victims of the wildfire will be able to rebuild their lives eventually.

---