Written by Michelle Kretzer
Ashley Bell earned a nomination for "Best Scared-as-S**t Performance" at the MTV Movie Awards for her portrayal of the possessed Nell Sweetzer in The Last Exorcism, produced by our buddy Eli Roth. Now, before The Last Exorcism 2 hits theaters, she's releasing an exclusive video for PETA that's scarier than anything even Eli could come up with.
A longtime animal rights activist and vegetarian, Ashley believes that everyone, even if they are scared, should see the videos of PETA's undercover investigations: "[W]hen you really see pictures and videos of what animals go through on a day-to-day basis, you can't get those images out of your head."
Halloween may be over, but every day is a nightmare for animals on factory farms, in laboratories, and on fur farms. Share Ashley's new video and encourage others to exorcise cruelty.
When the Olsen twins—the "Trollsens," as PETA calls them—trotted out a fur backpack, there wasn't a chance that Running Russell Simmons star and animal advocate extraordinaire Simone Reyes was going to let it pass without a comment. She blasted the Trollsens on her blog, saying that they are "unfortunately using their vanity and the pursuit of making a blessed buck at the expense of innocent sentient beings." Russell Simmons jumped in to help, tweeting Simone's blog.
The Trollsens could take a cue from Banana Republic, which is launching a line inspired by the costumes in the upcoming film Anna Karenina that will be designed with elegant velvet, lace, and faux fur.
You won't catch Constance Marie wearing animals or gawking at them in the rodeo ring. She tweeted, "Please boycott rodeos! #Video shows #Reno rodeo horses being shocked to perform: bit.ly/LLoUot #CrueltyIsNotEntertainment."
Horror movie king Eli Roth knows that what's really horrific is when animals are abused for entertainment. He tweeted in defense of elephants: "Elephants need you! Urge the Atlanta City Council to pass a total bullhook ban! bit.ly/LFIivF #NeverBeSilent."
Photo: Robert Sebree Grooming: Cheri Keating/The Wall Group Animatronic Snake: Greg Nicotero/ KNB EFX Group
Vegan pitcher Pat Neshek knows that people provide the best entertainment: The talented Norfolk Tides player just snagged Pitcher of the Week honors.
To keep up with what the stars are doing for animals, follow @PETA on Twitter.
Written by PETA
Whatever Milwaukee is brewing, we want some of it. We were already rooting for the Brewers because of veggie royalty Prince Fielder, and now we learn that vivacious outfielder Nyjer Morgan, with whom Fielder shares this week's Sports Illustrated cover, attributes his out-of-the-ballpark energy and .306 batting average to his healthy vegetarian diet.
Could Roseanne Barr be the next star to "do a Clinton" and convert to a vegan diet? Extolling the virtues of faux meat and tweeting at McDonald's to stop abusing chickens sounds like a great start.
Eli Roth is such a talented tweeter for animals that we gave him his own web feature. (Wait 'til you see what he says about Go Daddy CEO Bob Parsons. #hilarious.)
Fellow animal-friendly tweeters Pink and Tommy Lee took to Twitter to express their outrage over Indiana's barbaric "snapperfest." And Indiana native Bree Olson was so determined to stop the turtle torture that the Green Goddess posted the local sheriff's department's contact info on her website and asked people to call and complain.
Not to be out-tweeted, Glee star Lea Michele opined about her dream of retiring all the horses who are forced to spend long, hot days hauling around carriages full of tourists in her native New York City.
The next time she visits New York, Lea may spot Whoopi Goldberg out buying toy and treats for the lucky kitten she adopted after he was tossed from a moving car. Adopting instead of buying is catching on across the pond, too, if we can judge by Camilla Parker Bowles and her new rescued pup, Beth. We think dedicated dog guardian Michael Vartan, who stars in this weekend's highly anticipated thriller Colombiana, as well as a new PETA ad, would approve.
While Michael steams up the big screen, fellow PETA pal Bethenny Frankel will be taking over the small one with her new talk show. Will she get naked for animals again? Stay tuned.
To stay up to date on all celebrity/animal happenings, follow PETA on Twitter.
Written by Michelle Sherrow
Some of the gruesome scenes in the upcoming horror movie The Last Exorcism might make you lose your lunch, but at least you can take comfort in knowing that Ashley Bell's onscreen vomit is … vegan! Ashley, who plays the demonically possessed Nell Sweetzer, told Nylon magazine that the film's director called her up to ask if she was vegetarian—because he needed to know if he should make her barf out of Gatorade or chicken broth. Ashley doesn't eat meat, so Gatorade it was.
We're not surprised that the film's crew was so thoughtful. After all, PETA pal Eli Roth is one of the producers!
Ashley and her veggie vomit will be hitting theaters August 27.
Written by Paula Moore
The prestigious Telly Awards "honor the very best local, regional, and cable television commercials and programs, as well as the finest video and film productions." And guess who just won four—yes, count 'em, four—Tellies this year for outstanding public service announcements (PSAs)? You got it: PETA!
Eli Roth's spot about the link between animal abuse and violence against people took the bronze in the Public Service category.
Both our Thanksgiving PSA, reminding viewers that the holidays can be murder on turkeys and our too-hot-for-TV "Veggie Love" ad took silver awards in the Nonprofit Campaign category.
And my favorite, PETA's "Stolen for Fashion" ad featuring the voices of Pink and Ricky Gervais, also won Nonprofit Campaign silver:
Check it out, and then tell us which PETA PSA is your fave.
Faster than you can say Frau von Hammersmark, actor-director Eli Roth took to Twitter following last month's death of a SeaWorld trainer to speak out against keeping marine mammals in captivity.
The Inglourious Basterds star knows that if SeaWorld continues to exploit and abuse animals, then a sequel to the fatal horror show will inevitably surface. So Roth has written to Hamilton James—the CEO of Blackstone, SeaWorld's parent company—asking that the theme park immediately move its imprisoned animals to coastal sanctuaries and replace them with state-of-the-art virtual reality exhibits.
Having helmed groundbreaking horror films such as Cabin Fever and Hostel, Roth is an expert on humane alternatives to live animals in entertainment—from CGI technology to animatronics. In his letter, he suggests these technologies and lets James know that "showing visitors a more realistic version of what life is like for real marine mammals rather than displaying the captive animals' unnatural and repetitive behavior patterns—which are linked to their oppressive environment—is actually more educational, with no risk to human life."
Join Roth and the many other stars who have spoken out against SeaWorld by urging James to release these jailed animals to sanctuaries before another animal or human dies.
Written by Logan Scherer
Sharon McDonough has been accused of running what her son calls "a concentration camp for animals" after officials found the bodies of 20 dogs buried in her backyard in Selden, New York, and discovered six living animals (who were reportedly confined to soiled cages) inside her house. McDonough allegedly forced her children to commit nightmarish acts of cruelty, including restraining a dog and duct-taping his mouth shut while she beat the animal. McDonough was arrested, and her six children have been taken into protective custody. Dozens of neighbors remain worried that their missing companion animals will soon be found inside the shallow graves of McDonough's backyard.
In the wake of this ghastly discovery, we're sending our PSA featuring Eli Roth to TV stations in the New York City area to warn viewers about the vicious cycle of violence that often begins with animal abuse and, as research has proved, often ends with violence against humans:
Former Alaska governor and vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's new book is hitting bookstores this week, and the advance word is that the lady who never saw a wolf, polar bear, or moose she wouldn't like to see ground up into burgers doesn't have many nice things to say about vegetarians. As was pointed out by PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk in her open letter to Palin, the only surprise is that Palin's jibes are as yawn-inducing as a rerun of The Man Show.
One has to wonder if there is an original line in Sarah Palin's book, given her remarks in it about vegetarians. (She seems to believe that we only eat salad, but if she's keeping an eye on the New York Times bestseller list, she will spot two vegan cookbooks in the top five with barely a salad recipe in either of them.) The long-brandished rebuttal to Ms. Palin's filched quote "If God had not intended for us to eat animals, how come He made them out of meat?" is "I guess God also intended for humans to be cannibals then because we are also made out of 'meat.'" And as for the amazingly glib "I love animals—right next to the mashed potatoes," the first time I saw that slogan was a few decades before America was graced with Ms. Palin's public presence, when it was used interchangeably with "I love spotted owls: baked or fried." Ms. Palin reportedly finds evolution a bit hard to swallow. Judging from her book, that applies to the evolution of ideas and attitudes as well. Very truly yours, Ingrid E. Newkirk
One has to wonder if there is an original line in Sarah Palin's book, given her remarks in it about vegetarians. (She seems to believe that we only eat salad, but if she's keeping an eye on the New York Times bestseller list, she will spot two vegan cookbooks in the top five with barely a salad recipe in either of them.) The long-brandished rebuttal to Ms. Palin's filched quote "If God had not intended for us to eat animals, how come He made them out of meat?" is "I guess God also intended for humans to be cannibals then because we are also made out of 'meat.'" And as for the amazingly glib "I love animals—right next to the mashed potatoes," the first time I saw that slogan was a few decades before America was graced with Ms. Palin's public presence, when it was used interchangeably with "I love spotted owls: baked or fried."
Ms. Palin reportedly finds evolution a bit hard to swallow. Judging from her book, that applies to the evolution of ideas and attitudes as well.
Very truly yours,
Ingrid E. Newkirk
Written by Alisa Mullins
Update: After receiving a complaint from Leslie Franks Solicitors that the description of its client hadn't made the distinction that Barker was not convicted of murder but rather of "causing or allowing" the death of Baby P, PETA U.K. redesigned this billboard. Convicted child abusers' violent acts send just as clear a warning to anyone who might overlook animal abuse.
It's been shown many times that those who abuse animals often go on to commit violence against human beings. (Remember what Eli Roth said?)
With that in mind, our friends at PETA UK have just placed a billboard in Haringey, the North London borough that is now infamous for being the location of the horrific abuse of "Baby P," a 17-month old boy who was found dead in his bed with a broken back, his fingertips sliced off, and his fingernails pulled out with pliers. He was also punched so hard in the face that he swallowed a tooth.
As a child, Baby P's abuser, Steven Barker, tortured animals, including frogs, whom he would skin before breaking their legs. How much suffering could have been prevented if Barker's fascination with inflicting torture on animals had been taken more seriously?
Baby P's case is a chilling reminder that cruelty-to-animals cases must be reported and aggressively prosecuted in order to protect helpless victims of all species.
Written by Amanda Schinke
Actor/director Eli Roth wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty bashing "Natzees" with a baseball bat as Sgt. Donnie Donowitz, aka "The Bear Jew," in Inglourious Basterds, nor has he shied away from gore in his "oh-my-god-this-is-so-disgusting-but-I-cannot-look-away" films Hostel and Cabin Fever. But now, Eli Roth—who, behind all the (fake) blood and guts, has a heart of gold—has teamed up with PETA to direct and star in our very first MySpace exclusive PSA. In the ad, he reminds everyone that the violence in his movies is fake—but violence against animals is real and is an important issue.
View the ad on MySpace and then check out behind-the-scenes footage from the shoot:
A guy who enjoys an "all in good fun" beheading and long walks on the beach? What more could you ask for?
How about some exclusive pictures?
Posted by Liz Graffeo
If you have a general question for PETA and would like a response, please e-mail Info@peta.org. If you need to report cruelty to an animal, please click here. If you are reporting an animal in imminent danger and know where to find the animal and if the abuse is taking place right now, please call your local police department. If the police are unresponsive, please call PETA immediately at 757-622-7382 and press 2.
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