Novelist and “Black Bird” creator Dennis Lehane went off script Tuesday to call out Donald Trump’s $45 million military parade Saturday commemorating the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary — and, yes, the president’s June 14 birthday. He called the spectacle “the height of performative masculinity.”
Speaking to TheWrap for his new Apple TV+ project, “Smoke,” the acclaimed author (“Gone, Baby, Gone,” “Mystic River,” “Shutter Island”) briefly weighed in on Trump’s antics, calling him a draft dodger and even comparing the president to a “whiny little bitch” character from the new series.
“I usually steer away from politics,” Lehane said, bringing up the topic himself, “but let’s just say, on one very simple issue, to be a draft dodger who’s trying to throw yourself a military birthday parade is the height of performative masculinity. I don’t even know where to go with that. We’ve literally met the death of irony.”
Trump is rolling out a military parade on Saturday to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the U.S. army — and it also happens to fall on his 79th birthday. An Army spokesperson said that the parade is expected to cost upwards of $45 million. On Tuesday, amid reports that protests against the parade are being planned online, the Trump told White House reporters, “And if there’s any protester that wants to come out, they will be met with very big force.”
Lehane’s comments sprang out of a discussion of the tightly wound arson investigator Dave Gudsen in “Smoke,” played by Taron Egerton, reuniting with the creator after “Black Bird.” Lehane explained, “Taron and I wanted to get at that with Dave. He’s so unempathetic, and yet he’s such a whiny little sentimental bitch when it comes to his own needs.”
In the series, which premieres with its first two episodes June 27, Dave is frustrated by being assigned a female partner (Jurnee Smollett) he never asked for to track down two serial arsonists.
“Taron and I are both fascinated by performative masculinity. It’s just an interesting phenomenon that we’re starting to see the worst end result of right now. We’re living in it,” Lehane continued.
Dave also clashes with his apathetic teenage stepson, who’s made it clear David will never live up to his own father. “That’s what Dave Gudsen represents in a lot of ways. When he says to his wife, ‘The kid just needs to f–king man up.’ And she says, ‘Oh, we’re here for some truth?”’
“Some people are always like that. The people who were always like, ‘Why should I feel anything for anybody?’ are always the whiniest bitches,” Lehane said.
“Smoke” premieres with two episodes on June 27 and airs new episodes Fridays. Check back later for TheWrap’s full interview with Lehane.
