Academy Award nominee and “PETA Honorary Director” James Cromwell was arrested earlier this afternoon in conjunction with a protest that took place at a New York City Starbucks location. Cromwell and his associates were protesting the coffee chain charging more for diary-alternatives for their drinks. According to Deadline police were called to the scene where they asked the Babe, Spider-Man 3, and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom star and his cohorts to depart. The trade reports that they left after about 30 minutes inside the location. It remains unclear how Cromwell so easily removed his hand from the counter however. You can see a video of the protest below.
“Non-dairy products all over the world…France, they give these things away. There’s no charge for it. Here, there’s an exorbitant charge,” Cromwell said while glued to the counter. “Why, when it’s so important now to address climate change and to understand the violence to animals to go on to make dairy products that are served here? There’s no reason for it except greed.”
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Cromwell, who was previously nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Babe (the film that inspired him to become a vegan), has been arrested numerous times over the years for his protests with PETA. He was arrested in 2017 during a protest outside of Seaworld, protesting the inhumane conditions of the animals in the park, and in 2019 when he protested at a Board of Regents meeting for the Texas A&M University System, protesting their use of dogs for medical research.
The actor made the change to becoming Vegan after playing Farmer Hoggett in the first Babe movie and has since made his activism a calling card that he uses on camera as well. His character Benjamin Lockwood in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom is integral to the plot of the film, starting the rescue of the dinosaurs from Isla Nublar to a nature preserve (a plan that…does not happen). Cromwell’s character on HBO’s Succession, Ewan Roy, is also a notable activist, declaring to the dismay of “Cousin Greg” that his share of his inheritance will be given to Green Peace instead.
