In 2013’s Kick-Ass 2, Jim Carrey played Colonel Stars and Stripes, the vigilante leader of the superhero group Justice Forever. Though filming seemingly went smoothly, Carrey had a change of heart about his involvement with the project following the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newton, Connecticut, on December 14, 2012.
A couple of months prior to Kick-Ass 2’s premiere, Carrey publicly disavowed the movie, tweeting that he couldn’t “support that level of violence” in good conscience. He went on to apologize to the rest of the cast and crew for not helping to promote it moving forward.
Why Jim Carrey Hated This Movie
Carrey had previously told MTV News that he didn’t think violent movies caused problems in real life, but didn’t feel they helped the problem either. Additionally, the Dumb and Dumber star revealed that he would be making more careful choices about the roles he takes in the future.
Mark Millar, who wrote the original comics, responded to Carrey’s comments by saying, “Like Jim, I’m horrified by real-life violence (even though I’m Scottish), but Kick-Ass 2 isn’t a documentary. No actors were harmed in the making of this production.”
The remarks also drew reactions from Carrey’s co-star, Chloë Grace Moretz, Nicolas Cage (who appeared in the original film), and the movie’s director, Jeff Wadlow. For her part, Moretz said she respected Carrey’s stance but questioned the idea that people are easily swayed by movies. Cage shared his thoughts with EntertainmentWise, telling them, “Jim is Jim. Jim’s gonna do what Jim’s gonna do, and that’s his decision.” However, he explained, “I still believe in freedom of speech, and I still believe that it’s an art.”
As for Wadlow, he spoke up in defense of the film, describing Carrey’s performance in it as “fantastic.” In working with Carrey, Wadlow learned that the comedian was as unpredictable in person as he was on-screen. At the end of the day, he remained hopeful that people would check out the movie and arrive at their own conclusions. Furthermore, Wadlow noted that there was less violence in Kick-Ass 2 than in the previous entry in the series, with a stronger focus on hand-to-hand combat rather than guns.
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