Although Hollywood uses guns extensively in their movies, the perception is that most celebrities stand against firearms. Many seem to be against the idea of private gun ownership altogether.
With such a perception, it might come as a shock to us that there are actually quite a few Hollywood celebs who are not only advocates of gun ownership but who have large private gun collections themselves.
A few pro-gun celebrities include Vince Vaughn, Tom Selleck, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Dolly Parton (carries a .38), Miranda Lambert, the late Sammy Davis Jr., Ice T, Eric Clapton, James Hetfield, Bruce Willis, Ashton Kutcher, Demi Moore, Joe Perry, Eva Longoria, Ozzy Osbourne, Johnny Depp, Samuel L. Jackson, and Alton Brown, among others.
That said, let’s take a look at some of the A-list celebrities who are gun owners themselves.
Brad Pitt
Raised in Springfield, Missouri, Brad Pitt was gifted his grandfather’s gun when he entered grade school, shooting his first gun at the ripe old age of just eight years old. He believes that the United States was founded upon the Second Amendment.
Many of the movies he’s played in show him handling guns, and he seems adept at it.
Forbes quoted him as saying, “There’s a rite of passage where I grew up of inheriting your ancestors’ weapons… My brother got my dad’s. I got my grandfather’s shotgun when I was in kindergarten. America is a country founded on guns. It’s in our DNA. It’s very strange, but I feel better having a gun. I really do. I don’t feel safe, I don’t feel the house is completely safe, if I don’t have one hidden somewhere. That’s my thinking, right or wrong.”
Angelina Jolie
Jolie is Brad Pitt’s former wife, and better yet, she’s a major gun advocate. As part of her wedding gift, Brad Pitt bought her an indoor firing range complete with indoor shooting systems. She considers shooting therapeutic.
One of the guns she owns was made by custom gun maker Jesse James (a Cisco 1911), and it is engraved with “Mama Knows Best.” Well, maybe this mama does know best! How do we know that? Because she passed along her love of firearms to her children. I mean, what better gift could a mom give to her kids? It proves she loves them.
Plus, she loves to play paintball with her kids, so there’s that.
Tom Selleck
A staunch advocate of the Second Amendment, Selleck has a huge gun collection and formerly served on the NRA’s board of directors (he has since resigned). He actively still collects guns to this day.
Tom has been known to enjoy ordering custom shotguns. He likes picking out the details of the gun, and he claims that they’re still made similarly to how they were back in the 1920s. After that’s done, he says the waiting begins. The process takes about three to four years before he actually receives the gun when it’s completed.
Back in 2009, a Cabela’s store in Nevada set up a display with several of Tom’s guns for the public to view. Among the firearms present was the Shiloh Sharps #3 rifle in .45-110 that was featured in “Quigley Down Under.” A .45 Smith & Wesson Schofield revolver from “Crossfire Trail” was also present, as was a Winchester 1876 in .45-60, also from the same movie. In the movie “Monte Walsh,” two guns were on hand: an 1887 Winchester 12-gauge shotgun and an ivory-gripped Colt SAA reproduction.
Eric Clapton
Not only is Clapton one of the most influential guitar players of all time, but he’s an enthusiastic gun collector. Word has it that he has a number of custom firearms in his extensive collection.
He enjoys the social aspect of shooting, getting together with other people, and interacting.
Bruce Willis
A long-time firearms enthusiast and 2A supporter, Willis doesn’t believe that there is a correlation between guns in movies and violence in real life. He believes that harming the Second Amendment will harm the protections that the Constitution safeguards. “I think that you can’t start to pick apart anything out of the Bill of Rights without thinking that it’s all going to become undone.”
Bruce also passed on his love of guns to his daughter, Rumer. It’s nice to see that he’s keeping it in the family.
Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore
Right after they married in 2005, the couple purchased new firearms to add to their collections. He bought a pistol from Springfield Armory, and she chose a Glock. In 2010, Demi Moore was pictured firing a full-auto firearm at a gun range. Though they are no longer married, their love for guns hasn’t died.
Joe Perry
Aerosmith’s lead guitarist is also a gun guy. He began enjoying firearms at the age of 12 after receiving his first BB gun. Not long after that, he got a Crossman pellet gun. According to an interview with Outdoor Life, he said, “Every day after school, I’d walk our four or five acres with my dog and hunt till it got dark.”
The firearms that Perry seems to enjoy most are from the ’20s and ’30s, specifically flintlocks and air rifles. Perry has approximately 50 guns in his collection, including a Walther PPK.
Alton Brown
Believe it or not, celebrity Chef Alton Brown is a major firearms enthusiast! Apparently, his favorite firearms for home defense are from Mossberg and Heckler & Koch. He also states that he carries a Kimber Solo 9mm compact pistol for personal defense.
As a long-time James Bond fan, Brown also expressed a love for the Walther PPK. Hey, the guy has good taste in firearms.
Brown was quoted saying, “I have an office in a questionable part of town, and I’m often working there rather late at night. I have been accosted before, so I may or may not be armed at certain times.” The man clearly realizes the benefits of being armed and ready.
Final Thoughts
While researching this article, I must admit that I was a bit surprised that so many Hollywood celebs are gun owners and advocates. I did know a few on the list already, but I learned something new on the subject. Hopefully, our readers have as well.
These aren’t the only armed members of Hollywood, but we tried to hit the high points. We’d have enjoyed bringing you some photos of their personal collections, but those are tough to find. With that said, we can’t blame them; who’d want photos of their gun collection floating around the internet? Certainly not us.
Hopefully, this article will give you the feeling that perhaps there’s hope left for Hollywood. Certainly, there are some people working in the film industry who think just like gun owners because they actually are gun owners themselves!
