Ben Stiller says he makes 'no apologies' for Tropic Thunder

The actor said he is proud of the 2008 satirical action comedy

BEN STILLER, TROPIC THUNDER, 2008
Ben Stiller said he is proud of Tropic Thunder. (PA Images/Alamy)

Ben Stiller has said he makes “no apologies” for his controversial film Tropic Thunder.

The 2008 satirical action comedy sparked criticism for its treatment of disability and the fact that actor Robert Downey Jr wore blackface.

However, Stiller has said he is “proud” of the movie, which followed a group of actors making a war film.

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The actor - who also directed the film - opened up after someone on Twitter said he should “stop apologising” and that the movie “was and still is funny AF”.

“I make no apologies for Tropic Thunder,” Stiller tweeted.

“Don’t know who told you that.

"It’s always been a controversial movie since when we opened.”

“Proud of it and the work everyone did on it,” added the star.

Ben Stiller arrives at the 28th annual Critics Choice Awards at The Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel on Sunday, Jan. 15, 2023, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
Ben Stiller directed and acted in the film. (Invision/AP)

Downey Jr has previously addressed the use of blackface to play Kirk Lazarus, an actor who undergoes “pigmentation alteration” surgery to play a Black soldier.

Speaking on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast in 2020, he said: “Ninety percent of my black friends were like, ‘Dude, that was great.’

"I can’t disagree with them [the other 10 percent], but I know where my heart lies.

STILLER,JR, TROPIC THUNDER, 2008,
Robert Downey Jr was in blackface in the film. (PA Images/Alamy)

"I think that it’s never an excuse to do something that is out of place and not of its time, but to me it was a blasting the cap on [the issue]."

Downey Jr, who was nominated for a best supporting actor Oscar for the film, went on: "I think having a moral psychology is job one.

"Sometimes, you just gotta go, ‘Yeah I effed up'.

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"Not in my defence, but Tropic Thunder is about how wrong [blackface] is, so I take exception.”

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