Less than a year before Kick-Ass 2 made its August 16, 2013 debut, a real-life tragedy struck the nation. On December 14, 2012, Adam Lanza entered the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut with a firearm, and went on to kill 26 people before taking his own life. The shooting shocked the conscience of the nation, yet the enactment of any meaningful gun reform legislation remained elusive. Deeply saddened by the event, Jim Carrey made it known how it affected him, and his attitude toward his most recent title.
"I did Kickass a month b4 Sandy Hook and now in all good conscience I cannot support that level of violence," the star of The Truman Show wrote on Twitter in June of 2013, adding, "I meant to say my apologies to others involve [sic] with the film. I am not ashamed of it but recent events have caused a change in my heart." He later mentioned that Sandy Hook opened his eyes, evidently leading to his decision to swear off movies that demand he simulate acts of excessive violence.
Despite Colonel Stars and Stripes' lack of gun use (the one he carried was empty, and he only kept it around as an intimidation tactic), Jim Carrey could never bring himself to endorse Kick-Ass 2 at the time of its premiere. The film arrived at cinemas everywhere regardless, but the actor has stuck by his word and has yet to appear in another graphic film.
