Jennifer Coolidge is giving Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce the benefit of the doubt when it comes to their Sydney Zoo date ... even though she says PETA is right to disapprove.
The "White Lotus" star was at LAX when a photog asked her about Taylor and Travis' controversial date idea, which is drawing PETA's ire.
Jennifer says the lovebirds should get a pass for a few reasons ... she doesn't think they put a lot of thought into going to the zoo and were just looking for something romantic to do together.
A big PETA supporter herself, Jennifer says Taylor and Travis seem like fellow animal lovers ... and isn't going to condemn them here. She's kinda walking a fine line here -- huge fan, but also ... big animal lover.
As we reported ... PETA says the famous couple should look elsewhere the next time they're in the mood to be around animals, suggesting they hit up an animal sanctuary instead of a zoo.
PETA also took issue with the couple feeding a kangaroo at the Sydney Zoo ... saying it was harmful to the animal to do that.
Jennifer's stopping short of calling out Taylor and Travis too hard ... but says she ultimately agrees with whatever PETA says on the matter. It's pretty funny to see her wrestle with this dilemma on camera ... you can tell she loves them, and doesn't wanna slam 'em.
Bottom line ... Jennifer seems to be taking a more diplomatic approach than some.