The RoboCop statue is definitely happening in Detroit.
That’s the update today from the Detroit News. For those who haven’t been following along, last year, a Twitter user in Massachusetts jokingly tweeted to Detroit Mayor Dave Bing that the city should erect a statue in honor of RoboCop, the cyborg public servant featured in the 1987 film based in Detroit. The mayor dryly responded that there were no plans for a statue, and suddenly everyone became interested.
One Detroiter set up an account on Kickstarter to raise money for the statue. Less than two months after that original tweet, $67,436 was raised.
Along the way, there has been controversy. Some don’t like how the RoboCop films portrayed Detroit – as a post-apocalyptic wasteland, run by an evil corporation. Some didn’t like the idea that people would spend money on a statue to honor a movie character, when so many other worthy projects go unfunded in the city.
RoboCop himself (actor Peter Weller) weighed in on Funny or Die:
Then, the idea grew beyond just the RoboCop statue. To take advantage of the attention surrounding the statue idea, local foodbank Forgotten Harvest launched RoboCharity. RoboCop (Peter Weller) made a video to support the charity. And, later this month, Forgotten Harvest will host a fundraiser, cosponsored by Funny or Die.
As for the statue itself, the Detroit News reports the original RoboCop costume is being scanned now, and the the resulting mold will be cast into a metal sculpture by Detroit’s own Venus Bronze Works.
According to the News:
“The statue’s definitely coming,” said Jerry Paffendorf, who spearheaded the controversial 2011 campaign to raise money and find a home in Detroit for the statue. “The only thing that’s up in the air is the timeline and where it’s going to go.”
One possibility is to put the statue outside Imagination Station in Detroit, opposite the Michigan Central train depot.
When the RoboCop statue does rise in Detroit, will you go see it?
