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Gary Oldman admits studio leaked their own RoboCop 'spy’ photos (exclusive)

Star says that paparazzi photos were carefully staged as part of the film’s PR process.

Back in September 2012, partway through the filming of the new ‘RoboCop’, set photos appeared online giving eager fans their first glimpse at the new robo-suit that Alex Murphy would wear in the film.

Comments on the photos ranged from denial ("No no no, no, no-no... no... no, no... no. NO! F*** that suit!”) to anger (“This is a suit not a robot. They ruined it.”) all the way to despair (“Part man, part machine, all cr**).

[Why did they make RoboCop family-friendly?]

But, believe it or not, the paparazzi shots were part of a carefully stage-managed PR plan, as Gary Oldman who play Dr Dennett Norton in the film explained to Yahoo Movies.

“We set that up. We leaked those pictures,” says Oldman in our video above, “That was absolutely a staged photoshoot.”


We often assume that ‘leaked’ photos are staged, but this is the first time we’ve had it confirmed from the horse’s mouth.

“What happens is, you’ll get someone who will leak pictures, so it’s going to happen anyway,” Oldman admits.

[Tarantino furious over leaked Western script]

“So, take a ‘paparazzi shot’, but at least of the suit at an angle that you like, so you can ‘leak’ your picture first, and have some control over it.”

It’s refreshing to hear an actor being so candid about the ‘magic' of show business, but it’s not surprising coming from Oldman, who admitted he took the part for the money.



Joel Kinnaman, the man beneath the suit, says he pays no attention to internet commenters.

“The suit is digitally enhanced in post-production with CGI and that makes the complete product,” says Kinnaman, “So I didn’t get bothered with what somebody was saying when they’d just seen a fragment of it, and getting angry about seeing 20 percent of what it is.”

“In my mind, I’m like - Well, if you’re mad about it, and you want to spend your time being mad, in your mum’s basement, then you go ahead. But wait until you’ve seen the whole thing until you spend all that energy.”

‘RoboCop’ is in UK cinemas now.