Kid Rock is the latest celebrity to chastise Michael Moore and Seth Rogen over comments each made around the release of Clint Eastwood’s “American Sniper.”
“Fuck you Michael Moore, you’re a piece of shit and your uncle would be ashamed of you,” Rock wrote on his website. “Seth Rogen, your uncle probably molested you. I hope both of you catch a fist to the face soon. God bless you Chris Kyle, Thank you for your service.”
On Sunday, Moore said his uncle was killed by a sniper in World War II, adding: “We were taught snipers were cowards. Will shoot u in the back. Snipers aren’t heroes.” Moore never mentioned “American Sniper” by name, but many connected his comments to the film, a biographical drama focusing on the life of late Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, a war veteran who was widely regarded as “deadliest sniper” in U.S. history. The director later posted his position on “American Sniper” to Facebook:
Awesome performance from Bradley Cooper. One of the best of the year. Great editing. Costumes, hair, makeup superb!
Oh … and too bad Clint gets Vietnam and Iraq confused in his storytelling. And that he has his characters calling Iraqis “savages” throughout the film. But there is also anti-war sentiment expressed in the movie. And there’s a touching ending as the main character is remembered after being gunned down by a fellow American vet with PTSD who was given a gun at a gun range back home in Texas — and then used it to kill the man who called himself the ‘America [sic] Sniper’.
Also, best movie trailer and TV ads of the year.
That same day, Rogen tweeted that “American Sniper” reminded him of a fictitious Nazi propaganda film that was part of 2009’s “Inglorious Basterds.” (He later clarified that he liked Eastwood’s film and said critics had blown his comments out of proportion.)
Other celebrities and conservative pundits have spoken out in defense of the film and of Kyle, who was killed at a shooting range in 2013.
Sarah Palin, who was friends with Kyle, wrote that “Hollywood leftists” are not “fit to shine Chris Kyle’s combat boots.” Dean Cain called Kyle an American hero. And country star Craig Morgan wrote a lengthy Facebook post Monday directed at Rogen, calling his tweets inaccurate and insensitive.
“I’m sick and tired of people like you running your mouth when you have no idea what it takes for this country to maintain our freedoms,” Morgan wrote. “If you and anyone like you don’t like it, leave.”
According to The Hollywood Reporter, “American Sniper” is set to remain at the top of the box office this weekend. Its current box office tally in North America sits at $120 million.