You can file this one away under news that is in no way surprising -- former professional wrestler, and one time governor of Minnesota, Jesse Ventura isn't a fan of Clint Eastwood's Chris Kyle biopic American Sniper.
Shocking, right? Who would have thought that Ventura, who was awarded $1.8 million in a defamation suit last year against the Kyle Estate, wouldn't like the film glorifying Kyle's military career?
Kyle claimed in his autobiography that Ventura told him in a bar that the Navy SEALs "deserved to lose a few" in Iraq. Kyle claimed he then punched the former pro wrestler out. Though Kyle never referred to Ventura by name in the book, he did later clarify and said that the "Scruff Face" mentioned in the book was Ventura. Ventura said the encounter described in Kyle's book never happened and took him to court for defamation. After all, nobody wants to be known as the former governor who actively supports the killing of U.S. troops. That's what we call a "career ender."
Kyle was killed by a fellow veteran suffering from PTSD before the case made its way through the court, leaving his estate to deal with the defamation suit, where the court eventually ruled in Ventura's favor. Kyle's estate is currently appealing.
So what did Ventura actually say about the American Sniper movie making Kyle out to be a hero?
"A hero must be honorable, must have honor," Ventura told the Associated Press (via The Washington Times). "And you can't have honor if you're a liar. There is no honor in lying." He also said American Sniper is as "authentic" as Eastwood's Dirty Harry cop films from the 1970s. Ventura did go on to say he had not yet seen American Sniper.
There you have it folks. The man who won a defamation suit against Chris Kyle isn't a fan of Chris Kyle's movie.
