Mykelti Williamson, who played Bubba in Forrest Gump, opened up about why he's never been to the Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. restaurants

Williamson said he's never been "properly invited" to the chain restaurant, named after the fictional one in the film

Williamson also explained how he helped make shrimp such a defining part of Bubba's character

You might love the shrimp at Bubba Gump Shrimp, but their namesake has never tasted them.

Mykelti Williamson, who played Bubba in 1994’s opened up about his decision to never go to the restaurant on the June 2 episode of theIn the movie, when Tom Hanks’ title character enlists in the U.S. Army, he befriends Williamson’s Benjamin Buford "Bubba" Blue, who’s obsessed with shrimp. Though Bubba dies in combat, Forrest fulfills his promise to Bubba and opens Bubba Gump Shrimp Company.

In 1996, the first real-life Bubba Gump Shrimp Company opened and was a partnership between Paramount and the Rusty Pelican restaurant chain. During the podcast, Kmetko asked Williamson, 68, if he gets a free pass at Bubba Gump.

“I've never been,” he said. “You're speaking of the restaurant? I've never been to one in my life.”

Later in the episode, he explained, “The only reason I've never been was because I don't feel I was properly invited. Sometimes, when you invite someone somewhere, it should be ... highly considerate of what the possibilities could be with a union.” Meetings create “value” that should be considered, he said.