Hollywood icon Clint Eastwood partnered up with leading man Bradley Cooper to help pay tribute to the life of decorated veteran Chris Kyle in the 2014 war drama American Sniper, which delves into the U.S. Navy SEAL sniper’s impressive military career and personal life after serving four tours during the Iraq War. Kyle’s life was tragically cut short when he was murdered by a former Marine in 2013, just a year after his gripping autobiography was published, which spent 37 weeks on The New York Times Best Seller list.
Despite the poignant adaptation garnering critical acclaim and becoming a box office success, earning over $547 million worldwide, American Sniper caused a bit of an uproar due to an ill-conceived decision to use a fake baby instead of a real one. The would-be tender moment shared between Cooper and his lifeless on-screen child was met with audible laughter instead of tears by audiences, sparking a heated discussion over the creative snafu. Let’s take a closer look.
Clint Eastwood’s Harrowing War Drama
Chronicling the life and legacy of revered U.S. Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle, whose four tours during the Iraq War resulted in him becoming the deadliest marksman in the country’s military history with 255 kills, the war drama American Sniper depicts the toll the combat took on the veteran’s mental health and loved ones. Directed by Hollywood legend Clint Eastwood and written by Jason Hall (Thank You for Your Service, Gran Turismo), the film is adapted from Kyle’s autobiography of the same name, which has sold over 1.2 million copies.
A year after the best-selling book’s release, Kyle was tragically murdered on February 2, 2013, by a former Marine. He was attempting to help cope with his PTSD, passing away at just 38 years old. Prior to Kyle’s death, Bradley Cooper had signed on to produce and star in an adaptation of his autobiography along with director Steven Spielberg, though the famed filmmaker ultimately dropped out of the project over creative differences, and Eastwood instead signed on.
American Sniper premiered on December 25, 2014, becoming the first R-rated movie to gross over $500 million worldwide with box office earnings of $547.4 million, while also garnering widespread critical acclaim. The riveting drama was named one of the Top Ten Films of the year by the National Board of Review and received six Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, winning just one for Best Sound Editing. Many were shocked that the film did not take home more awards, something they attributed to the infamous appearance of a certain fake baby during an important scene.
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An Infamous Fake Baby Causes an Uproar
The notorious prop baby appears during an emotional scene in American Sniper during which Cooper’s Chris has a deep heart-to-heart with his wife Taya (Sienna Miller) over her wanting him to be more present and focus on their family and his desire to go back to active duty. As Taya passes the baby to Chris, it becomes abundantly clear that it is not a real child and is instead a very awkward plastic baby, with the prop completely taking audiences and critics out of the poignant moment and causing quite a stir in the process.
Not even a talented actor like Cooper could make the baby look real, as the Maestro star seemed entirely unsure of how to hold the stiff, lifeless doll and failed to convince both himself and moviegoers that it could actually be real. The unsettling crying sound effects also did nothing to help the problem, making the snafu even more painfully obvious. Reviews were brutal when it came to discussing the ill-conceived prop, with Film School Rejects calling it “laughably fake” and The Sunday Times stating, “I have never seen so many fake babies in one film.”
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Journalist Mark Harris tweeted of the laughable prop: “That plastic baby in American Sniper is going to be rationalized by Eastwood auteur cultists until the end of days,” prompting screenwriter Jason Hall to respond to Harris and the criticism by writing: “hate to ruin the fun but real baby #1 showed up with a fever. Real baby #2 was no show. (Clint voice) Gimme the doll, kid.” Though American Sniper nonetheless became a lauded hit with fans and critics alike, there’s no denying that the inclusion of the plastic baby deeply lessened the emotional impact and intensity of the scene.
Fandango critic Dave Karger said of the film’s Oscar chances, “The reason why American Sniper is not going to win is because of the plastic baby,” a declaration that proved correct since the war drama won for Best Sound Editing and not in the other more high-profile categories like Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay. Cooper himself couldn’t help but poke fun at the puzzling decision to use a fake baby, telling Ellen Degeneres on her talk show in 2015: “I couldn’t believe it, like, I couldn’t believe that we were working with a plastic baby, I was like, ‘this is nuts,” before adding:
“I remember thinking – I made a joke. I was like, as Chris [Kyle, his character], I can’t even do it anymore but I was like ‘I’ma save y’all a hundred thousands dollars and just start doing this [with the arm]’ ‘coz you know you have to CGI the hand movements. I was like ‘watch this, eat your heart out Muppets’.”
Stream American Sniper on Netflix.
