Ben Stiller Makes 'No Apologies' For Robert Downey Jr.'s Tropic Thunder Character
"Tropic Thunder" has been the subject of a lot of controversies over the years. The film has been protested since its release in 2008 and continues to raise eyebrows over a decade later. Despite all the backlash, the writer-director and star Ben Stiller has never apologized for the film — or so he says.
The 2008 action-comedy was a risky satirization of some of Hollywood's more inhumane practices, one such practice being the way that disabled characters are used for Oscar bait. Ben Stiller plays a parody of a disabled character called Simple Jack in a movie-within-the-movie.
At face value and without the context of the film, Simple Jack might appear like a cruel caricature of disabled people. That's certainly the impression that fans got when U.S. Olympian Shaun White dressed up as the character for Halloween in 2018.
The Special Olympics spoke out against White when he posted a picture in the costume. "We are truly disappointed that Shaun White, an acclaimed Olympian, would choose this costume which is so offensive and causes so much pain," they told HuffPost in 2018. "Disability is not a joke nor should it be a punchline. We hope that Shaun White and others learn that this just continues stigma, stereotypes and discrimination."
Disability advocates also spoke out against "Tropic Thunder" in 2008. Stiller responded in support of the Special Olympics and White's apology — but also in support of the film. "'Tropic Thunder' was boycotted 10 years ago when it came out, and I apologized then," Stiller said on Twitter in 2018. It was always meant to make fun of actors trying to do anything to win awards. I stand by my apology, the movie, Shaun White, And the great people and work of the @SpecialOlympics."
Stiller's not sure who told you he apologized
Some people were grateful that Stiller took accountability for the more problematic parts of "Tropic Thunder," while others saw Stiller as another victim of an over-corrective cancel culture.
"Please stop apologizing for doing this movie," a "Tropic Thunder" fan named Benny S. tweeted at Ben Stiller in February 2023. "It was and still is funny AF ... Even funnier now with cancel culture the way it is. It's a MOVIE. Ya'll can just get over it. I was DYING laughing when I first saw it back in the day and so was everyone else."
Despite Stiller's remarks in 2018, he seems to have taken a firmer stance in defense of the film since the backlash has died down. "I make no apologies for 'Tropic Thunder,'" Stiller replied to Benny S. on Twitter. "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."
Stiller may have forgotten what he tweeted in 2018, but Benny S. didn't. "I'm guessing people saw [the 2018 tweet].... and took it, misconstrued it and ran with it," he offered. "That movie is a classic to this day. I stand with you bro."
Maybe Stiller never meant to apologize for the film, only for the way that a certain character had been misinterpreted. When it comes to media that could be construed as offensive, is intention what's most important? Or is it only a small piece of the appropriation puzzle?
RDJ has no regrets either
"Tropic Thunder" is, first and foremost, a satire of the moviemaking industry. Its primary intention is to make fun of people who do exploitative things for success. Even the haters have to admit that the film consistently reiterates that these caricatures are offensive and wrong — it's the primary source of the film's humor.
"It is a comedy, y'know, and I think that you can't really take it too seriously, and we're making fun of ourselves," Stiller explained to The Voice in 2009. "And really the joke is on the actors, and the idea of actors sort of wanting to be taken seriously by trying to win awards, and the lengths that they'll go to. So I think it's pretty clear in the tone of the movie that that's where the humor is."
Robert Downey Jr. plays a character that dons blackface for a role. The lasting image has gotten in some hot water over the years, but the "Iron Man" star has no regrets about the film either.
"I get to hold up to nature the insane self-involved hypocrisy of artists and what they think they're allowed to do on occasion," Downey Jr. told Joe Rogan in 2020. "90% of my black friends are like, 'Dude, that was great.' I can't disagree with [the other 10%], but I know where my heart was."
Despite the best of intentions, maybe what's upsetting about "Tropic Thunder" is that exploitation is a source of comedy in the first place. Still, it's sometimes hard to overlook the humor in the absurdity of actors' ploys for success. "Tropic Thunder" captures something undeniably uncomfortable, but it calls out a terrible trend in the movie industry by poking fun at it, and that's why it still sparks debate so many years later.