Bradley Cooper was already planning to make a movie based on the life of American Sniper author Chris Kyle when he heard the ex-Navy SEAL was killed last week at a gun range.
Now, Cooper wants to put the movie on the proverbial fast-track as well as star as the heroic military man. Cooper has another reason for wanting to go forward with the project, one that won’t come as a surprise to anyone who followed the celebrity news in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. (Emphasis added)
“His story first of all really needs to be told, and it’s also relevant on two fronts: gun control and the need to address the many soldiers who are coming back with PTSD. Medicine has evolved to such a state — soldiers are coming back and they’re going to assimilate into the culture and if we don’t address the mental state along with the physical state it’s going to be a problem.”
Will we see a lecture-filled biopic, or will Cooper and co. resist the ideological urge and simply pay tribute to an American hero?
Cooper is clearly becoming one of Hollywood’s more politically engaged actors. Earlier this week, Cooper joined with Vice President Joe Biden to discuss mental illness in connection to gun violence.