Ben Stiller criticises White House for use of Tropic Thunder clip: "War is not a movie"

Ben Stiller has called out the White House for its use of a clip from the 2008 film Tropic Thunder.

The White House used the clip in a compilation video captioned "JUSTICE THE AMERICAN WAY." The 42-second video also featured shots from Superman, Braveheart, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Transformers, and more.

"Hey White House, please remove the Tropic Thunder clip," wrote Stiller in a statement on X.

"We never gave you permission and have no interest in being a part of your propaganda machine. War is not a movie."

Hey White House, please remove the Tropic Thunder clip. We never gave you permission and have no interest in being a part of your propaganda machine. War is not a movie. https://t.co/dMQqRxxVCa

— Ben Stiller (@BenStiller) March 6, 2026

Tropic Thunder was directed by Ben Stiller and starred Stiller, Jack Black, and Robert Downey, Jr. The film is a satire of traditional war movies.

Stiller is not the first to call out the White House or Donald Trump for their unauthorised media usage. Artists including Kenny Loggins, Radiohead, and Olivia Rodrigo have spoken out against the use of their work in pro-Trump ads.

Last week, Kesha condemned the White House for using her 2010 song 'Blow' in a pro-military TikTok depicting fighter jets dropping bombs on ships.

"It's come to my attention that The White House has used one of my songs on TikTok to incite violence and threaten war," Kesha posted in a statement on X. "Trying to make light of war is disgusting and inhumane. I absolutely do NOT approve of my music being used to promote violence of any kind."

"Also, don't let this distract us from the fact that criminal predator Donald Trump appears in the Files over a million times," she continued.

In December, Sabrina Carpenter took to X to comment on the White House's unauthorised use of her song 'Juno' in a video depicting violent ICE raids.

"This video is evil and disgusting," wrote Carpenter. "Do not ever involve me or my music to benefit your inhumane agenda."