Sharon Osbourne has backed a campaign to rename Orange County’s John Wayne Airport over the actor’s “racist” remarks.

The Talk star, 67, called the Oscar-winning legend a “bad man” after a 1971 interview with Playboy Magazine was unearthed in which he said he “believed in white supremacy until the blacks are educated to a point of responsibility.”

She told the Daily Star: “It just gives me the creeps. There has always been this reputation of him of really hating blacks, Jews, anybody that wasn’t white.

“When the airport came, I was like: ‘Why would you give this man this honour of having an airport named after somebody like that, who is just a bad man, a really ugly man?’

“We cannot celebrate these people that we once thought were heroes.”

However, the True Grit actor’s son Ethan, 58, has strongly refuted any claims his dad was a racist.

A resolution passed on Friday asking that the county’s board of supervisors restore the name to the Orange County Airport.

In a statement made to Fox News, Ethan said: “Let me make one thing — John Wayne was not a racist. I know that term is casually tossed around these days, but I take it very seriously. I also understand how we got to this point.

He continued: “There is no question that the words spoken by John Wayne in an interview 50 years ago have caused pain and anger,” referencing Wayne’s Playboy interview.

“They pained him as, well, as he realized his true feelings were wrongly conveyed.”

In the interview, Wayne is quoted as saying, “I believe in white supremacy until the blacks are educated to a point of responsibility. I don’t believe in giving authority and positions of leadership and judgment to irresponsible people.”

Ethan, the president of John Wayne Enterprises, added that there are papers in Wayne’s archives that show “he did not support white supremacy in any way and believed that responsible people should gain power without the use of violence.”

He continued: “Those who knew him, knew he judged everyone as an individual and believed everyone deserved an equal opportunity.

“He called out bigotry when he saw it. He hired and worked with people of all races, creeds, and sexual orientations.

“John Wayne stood for the very best for all of us — a society that doesn’t discriminate against anyone seeking the American Dream.”

Wayne passed away at age 72 from cancer in 1979, and Ethan, his youngest son, said it would be unfair for his father to be judged on a single interview.

County officials voted to change the name of the airport when Wayne died — but a push to change its name back has a long history.

The issue has come up periodically down the years, and a statue of Wayne also appears outside the airport.

The latest push comes at a time when communities are moving to remove statues of those who legacies are tied to racist actions, sparked by the killing of George Floyd by a police officer in Minneapolis.

Ethan said: “The current focus on social justice is absolutely valid and necessary. But attempts by some to use it for political advantage distract from real opportunities for reform.

“One thing we know — if John Wayne were here today, he would be in the forefront demanding fairness and justice for all people.”

“He would have pulled those officers off of George Floyd, because that was the right thing to do. He would stand for everyone’s right to protest and work toward change.”

He concluded his statement: “My father believed that we can learn from yesterday, but not by erasing the past. His name, no matter where it is, will always embody these values, and our family knows the positive impact that he made on the world will never be diminished.”