Trump Refuses To Watch Neil Armstrong Biopic 'First Man' After Flag Controversy Erupts
The new movie, “First Man” starring Ryan Gosling has caused quite a bit of controversy around the nation for purposely omitting the planting of the U.S. flag on the moon by astronaut Neil Armstrong.
President Donald Trump has weighed into the controversy by saying he has no plans to see the movie.
In an interview with the Daily Caller, Trump calls the omission “unfortunate.” He told the Daily Caller, “It’s almost like they’re embarrassed at the achievement coming from America, I think it’s a terrible thing.”
“When you think of Neil Armstrong and when you think of the landing on the moon, you think about the American flag,” he added. “For that reason, I wouldn’t even want to watch the movie.”
Gosling, who portrays Armstong in the film, had previously told the Telegraph that he believed that the landing on moon “transcended countries and borders.”
“I think this was widely regarded in the end as a human achievement [and] that’s how we chose to view it,” Gosling said. “I also think Neil was extremely humble, as were many of these astronauts, and time and time again he deferred the focus from himself to the 400,000 people who made the mission possible.”
The president isn’t the only politician to object to the film’s omission.
Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio took to Twitter and said, “This is total lunacy. And a disservice at a time when our people need reminders of what we can achieve when we work together. The American people paid for that mission, on rockets built by Americans, with American technology & carrying American astronauts. It wasn’t a UN mission.”
This is total lunacy. And a disservice at a time when our people need reminders of what we can achieve when we work together. The American people paid for that mission,on rockets built by Americans,with American technology & carrying American astronauts. It wasn’t a UN mission. https://t.co/eGwBq7hj8C
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) August 31, 2018
Astronaut Buzz Aldrin — who was the second man to step foot on the moon after Armstrong — also slammed the film through a series of tweets. The 88-year-old Aldrin posted one tweet of him and Armstrong on the moon with the hashtags #proudtobeanAmerican, #freedom, #honor, #onenation, #Apollo11, #July1969, and #roadtoApollo50.
#proudtobeanAmerican #freedom #honor #onenation #Apollo11 #July1969 #roadtoApollo50 pic.twitter.com/gApIwLzaJw
— Dr. Buzz Aldrin (@TheRealBuzz) September 3, 2018
In addition, he retweeted a photo of himself saluting the flag.
The ultimate Selfie-Selfie…thank you for sharing the wonderful photo and your incredible journey @TheRealBuzz. #Moonwalker #Apollo11 #RoadToApollo50 #NASA pic.twitter.com/ZwAVgWZSJO
— Denise *over forty observer (not victim) of fate* (@pir8lksat40) July 22, 2018
Armstrong died in 2012 at the age of 82.
“First Man” is scheduled to be released in theaters next month.
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