Three years ago, it was a pretty amusing idea that got some unexpected traction. But starting Tuesday, the city of Detroit will actually have a full-size bronze statue of its greatest protector RoboCop to oversee its streets forever.
And Motown is pulling out all the stops today for the occasion that’s been dubbed RoboCop Day, including an official statue-unveiling and cop Alex Murphy’s alter-ego even throwing out the first pitch at Tuesday’s Tigers-Blue Jays game at Comerica Park.
While it would be nice to think the city arbitrarily chose June 3 to honor their cinematic superhero, we’re thinking it might have a little more to do with the fact that director Jose Padilha’s RoboCop remake is being released on DVD and Blu-ray that day.
Regardless, it’s the end of an odd project that started with an off-hand Twitter comment back in 2011 that Detroit should have a RoboCop statue. The sudden initiative built some momentum and after securing the needed $67,000 to produce the 10-foot replica, craftsmen went to work.
In fact, Crave showed you the partially-completed statue last year…
But there’s one interesting fact to today’s festivities, as noted by Crave movie site /Film — after the unveiling Tuesday, it’s unclear exactly where the statue will be permanently displayed.
Despite the hoopla today, Detroit’s taken a mostly hands-off approach to the entire statue drama, perhaps not wanting to fully embrace a 1987 film that depicts a near-future Motown as a crime-ridden hellhole, barely able to even keep its own cops alive, let alone protect its citizens.
Bottom line — the whole thing might strike a little too close to home for the trouble-plagued city.
But c’mon, Big D…figure out exactly where we can come see a 10-foot RoboCop and you just might entice us into dropping a few tourist dollars in your city. Make it happen!
