Posted on 09/11/2012 12:37:25 PM PDT by JohnPierce
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Hot on the heels of yesterday’s column about Hollywood’s evolving take on gun rights, comes the tale of yet another star who profits greatly from glorifying guns in film while apparently embracing gun control for all us ordinary mortals.
The star in this case is New Zealand born actor Karl Urban. While not yet what you would call an A-list star, his career is definitely up-and-coming.
He is best known for two roles, Bones on the 2009 Star Trek reboot and Russian Secret Service assassin Kirill in The Bourne Supremacy. And on September 21, he will return to the big screen with his biggest role yet as Judge Dredd in a much-touted 3D reboot of the popular and gritty comic book franchise.
As you may recall, the last big screen appearance of Judge Dredd featured rabid anti-gunner Sylvester Stallone and one has to wonder if there is some sort of curse on the character from a gun rights perspective.
I say curse because, as a comic fan, I was quite looking forward to the Dredd reboot. In fact, it was while looking for the updated trailer featuring the song by La Roux that I discovered Urban was a proponent of gun control.
The story goes something like this. In the last week of August, Karl Urban and writer Alex Garland held a round table interview in London about the upcoming movie. There was a lot of light-hearted banter about the movie and then Urban was asked whether there is serious social commentary in the movie. His response is the impetus for this article.
“That’s the world Dredd is set in, it’s set in a society that is on the verge of chaos and collapse and it’s not that big a leap. We take our freedoms pretty much for granted; I think it’s really interesting to look at a society where all those freedom has been taken away … It certainly makes me appreciate that I live in a democratic country that has good gun control.”
And then he laughed. The bugger actually laughed!
I was floored when I read this. I mean … I really shouldn’t expect deep thought from entertainers but I find the fact that he can bemoan the loss of rights while simultaneously praising gun control to be utterly sickening.
Being born and raised in New Zealand obviously contributes to his support of gun control but that only strengthens the argument that we must be just as vigilant in fighting cultural attacks on gun rights as we are with legislative and judicial attacks.
Now … out of fairness, I should note that this comment is the only time I could find that Urban has spoken out about gun control and the NRA does not include him on their list of anti-gun organizations and celebrities so there may yet be hope for him.
Perhaps a little more time in America will help him come to understand that “chaos and collapse” can come for any family with a crash in the night and only the proper self-defense tools will allow them to prevail.
It must be nice to live in a fantasy world.
I think the best part was Rob Schneider’s at the end. :)
He also played Éomer in the 2nd and 3rd Lord of the Rings movies. Theoden of Rohan’s nephew. Eomer became the new King once Theoden arrived proudly in the halls of his fathers....as he said.
Never watched Judge Dredd 1....will be sure to add Judge Dredd 2 to the same list. Why did it need remade anyway? The first one sucked perfectly well. They must have used the same rationale for the Total Recall remake.
I am glad this sackless capon lives in a “gun controlled” society and not mine.
Never trusted any Karl’s spelled with a K....they have a tendency to invade small helpless countries and demand “papers” or internal passports.
It is. But I am not sure what about this post says that I live in one. I noted that an actor had made a gun-control comment when talking about a movie I had hoped to see in the theater and I wrote about it. No fantasy there. :)
I did not realize that was him in Lord of The Rings. Good catch!
I like your comment about Karls with a K at the end. :)
Of course the world of Judge Dredd is one of very strict gun control, and all the bad guys are armed.
It’s not a remake it’s a re-attempt. Dredd has been a successful (in England) comic for over 30 years. There should be money to be made, though probably not much here because Dredd has only managed to get a small audience here. I’m seeing it, I assume all actors are morons so I don’t let they’re non-acting bother me. Looks like this one really captured the spirit of the comic, unlike the first try, and that’s what I want to see. Also it’s helped make the comics easier to get here, which I appreciate even if the movie turns out badly.
If you look for consistency from actors you will walk around disappointed. Their next job is all they care about because careers hang from silk threads. Unless you’re Clint Eastwood, you go with what will not offend the people who sign your checks.
You may be right but that is a heck of a way to run your life. :(
I guess my post was a clumsy one. I meant that Urban lives in a fantasy world. I’d like to live there too, but alas, I can’t seem to manage it. :)
Oh, heck, I remember him from Xena. He played Cupid and Caesar.
He surely realizes that in Hollywood it's hardly a career enhancer to come out for anything remotely Conservative. A Clint Eastwood can do it but not someone who is "up-and-coming".
Ahh. Now it makes sense. I would like to live in a perfect world as well but can never seem to manage it. :)
Didn’t know you’re an ELP fan....
That’s a very good point. He may be “playing the game.” Too bad the “game” is with our rights. :(
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