Ben Stiller has hit out at the White House after a clip from his film Tropic Thunder was used as part of a montage in a pro-war social media video.
The 42-second clip includes footage of recent strikes on Iran edited between scenes from a number of movies, including Iron Man 2, Gladiator, and Braveheart.
The Tropic Thunder scene shows Tom Cruise dancing in character as Les Grossman.
On X, Stiller wrote: “Hey White House, please remove the Tropic Thunder clip. We never gave you permission and have no interest in being a part of your propaganda machine. War is not a movie.”
The video ends with footage of a U.S. strike on an Iranian ship, followed by a clip of an animated character saying, “Now end this!” The White House logo then flashes on the screen, as a voice says “Flawless Victory” in reference to the video game series Mortal Kombat.
The clip is captioned: “JUSTICE THE AMERICAN WAY.”
The video was posted online a day after the White House faced widespread backlash on Wednesday for sharing a video of real missile strikes edited together with scenes from the video game franchise Call of Duty.
This criticism hasn’t deterred the White House, which shared another video Friday that combined strike footage with an infamous clip of a character from the Grand Theft Auto video game series saying, “Ah s***, here we go again.”
After each strike, the word “wasted” flashed across the screen, referencing the message Grand Theft Auto players see when their character dies.
When reached for comment, White House spokesperson Anna Kelly told The Independent: “Under the decisive leadership of President Trump, America’s heroic warfighters are meeting or surpassing all of their goals under Operation Epic Fury.”
“The legacy media wants us to apologize for highlighting the United States Military’s incredible success, but the White House will continue showcasing the many examples of Iran’s ballistic missiles, production facilities, and dreams of owning a nuclear weapon being destroyed in real time,” she added.
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The Iranian government has said at least 1,230 people have been killed in the attacks so far, the Associated Press reported Thursday.
Military investigators have also found it’s likely U.S. forces were responsible for a strike that hit a girls’ school in southern Iran, Reuters reported Thursday, citing two U.S. officials. Iranian officials have said more than 175 people were killed, including 150 students.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters Wednesday that officials were investigating the incident and said the U.S. would “never target civilian targets.” When asked that same day whether the deaths were the result of a U.S. strike, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters, “Not that we know of.”
Leavitt also told Reuters, “While the Department of War is currently investigating this matter, the Iranian regime targets civilians and children, not the United States of America.”
The Independent has contacted the White House for comment.
