Actor/Artist Carl McCrow, who plays a soldier in Tomorrow, has managed to convince the creative team behind the project to pledge to destroy a gun for each one pictured in the film. The film follows soldiers trying to assimilate into society after returning from combat and lists violent-movie-maven Martin Scorsese as an executive producer.
Tomorrow is the first major production to take part in McCrow’s Gun Neutral campaign, which will aim to convince other filmmakers to follow suit and funnel firearms from former war zones to the charity One Less Gun, so they can be decommissioned or destroyed.
But this story has an interesting twist. McCrow is a very successful artist with a permanent residency at New York’s Hoerle-Guggenheim gallery, and he regularly sells works for six figure sums — works, mind you, that often center around … well … guns. That bit of irony isn’t lost on the actor, who also loves a good round of Call of Duty, and he told NBC News “”I hate hypocrites, but then I think, ‘God you’re one of the biggest of them,’” he said. “Recognizing that most of us have a conflicted relationship with guns was the first step for me.”
While McCrow hails from London, the U.S. has its own conflicted history with firearms. Gun control remains one of the most politically divisive issues in American politics and is fresh on the national consciousness after a string of high-profile mass shootings in recent years.
“The simple fact is that there are too many guns and they ruin people’s lives every day,” says McCrow, and the About section on his website reveals just how personal his quest is.
“In 2009 McCrow’s close friend lost both legs and an arm in an explosion whilst on tour with the British Army in Afghanistan. It was one of the catalysts that turned a distant fascination with guns and weaponry into questions about individual purpose, morality, hidden stories and the ability of one person to make a difference. “
We’ll have to wait and see if McCrow’s crusade catches on in Hollywood. While Tomorrow doesn’t feature an unusual number of firearms, there are some films that would need to destroy quite a bit of weaponry to be a part of his campaign.
