American Sniper triggers a social media firestorm

American Sniper shattered opening weekend box office records, raking in $107.2 million over the four-day Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, the biggest take ever for a drama, according to The Hollywood Reporter. But the R-rated film chronicling the most lethal marksman in U.S. military history has whipped up a storm of controversy among Hollywood and political celebrities for its heroic portrayal of snipers, uniting strange bedfellows across social media.

The movie is based on Chris Kyle’s 2012 autobiography of the same title. Actor Bradley Cooper portrays Kyle as he serves four tours in Iraq, where he is officially credited with 160 kills, and struggles to reintegrate back into normal family life. The film is nominated for six Oscars, including best picture and best actor (Cooper).

Although the public flocked to see American Sniper, some Hollywood insiders criticized the film, claiming it glorifies killing people without forcing them to face their enemy. One Los Angeles billboard promoting the film became a public display of disapproval when someone spray-painted “MURDER!” across it in large red letters.

Filmmaker and anti-gun activist Michael Moore, who famously criticized the Iraq War in his 2003 Oscar acceptance speech, has a long-standing conflict with American Sniper’s director, Clint Eastwood. In 2002, Moore notoriously tricked Eastwood into letting him into his home for an unexpected, confrontational interview when Moore flashed an National Rife Association membership card. Last Sunday, Moore turned to Twitter to express his views on snipers: “My uncle killed by sniper in WW2. We were taught snipers were cowards. Will shoot u in the back. Snipers aren’t heroes. And invaders r worse.”

Canadian filmmaker Seth Rogen compared Eastwood’s film to Nazi propaganda when he tweeted the film reminded him of a scene from Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds, in which a German sniper hiding in a clock tower killed Allied soldiers. Rogen created controversy himself recently with his film The Interview, an over-the-top comedy about an American plot to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jung Un.

Re-tweets of Moore’s and Rogen’s comments lit up social media with a passionate defense of the war movie. “He’s kidding, right?” Actor Rob Lowe tweeted, referring to Moore calling snipers “cowards.” Actor Dean Cain and country music stars Craig Morgan and Blake Shelton also joined in with angry tweets and Facebook posts directed at the duo, USA Today reported.

Actress and liberal activist Whoopi Goldberg was surprisingly critical of Moore and Rogen for not supporting the film, stating on The View that it’s OK for Eastwood’s fellow filmmakers to have an opinion, but it’s disrespectful to both Eastwood and vets to publicly criticize it.

Politicians also jumped into the debate. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich tweeted Moore might need to spend some time with ISIS or Boko Haram to appreciate the film. Former vice presidential candidate and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, famously photographed with a rifle herself, also defended the film.

“Hollywood leftists: while caressing shiny plastic trophies you exchange among one another while spitting on the graves of freedom fighters who allow you to do what you do, just realize the rest of America knows you’re not fit to shine Chris Kyle’s combat boots,” Palin posted on Facebook.

Just hours after his tweet went viral, Moore posted on his Facebook page that his tweet had been misunderstood and he wasn’t talking about Eastwood’s film at all. Instead, he was referencing the fact that it was the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend, when we celebrate the work of a “great man” killed by a sniper—just like a Japanese sniper killed his uncle 70 years ago. Moore went on to praise some of the film’s qualities, such as editing, costume design, and Cooper’s performance, but criticized Eastwood’s plot: “Too bad Clint gets Vietnam and Iraq confused in his storytelling.”

The dichotomy of a sniper’s duty and whether it is heroic or barbaric will continue to be debated. But when it comes to Judgment Day, only one opinion will matter. For the real Chris Kyle, who died in 2013, there was no fear about meeting his Maker.

“I believe the fact that I’ve accepted Jesus as my savior will be my salvation,” Kyle wrote in his autobiography. “But in that back room or whatever it is when God confronts me with my sins, I do not believe any of the kills I had during the war will be among them.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.