‘Babe’ Star James Cromwell Helped Rescue A Pig From A Slaughterhouse And Named Him (That’s Right) Babe

Life may be stranger than fiction, but sometimes fiction bleeds into life. Take James Cromwell. In 1995’s Babe, the actor played a farmer who decides not to slaughter a nice little pig who was improbably good at herding sheep. Jump nearly 30 years and he’s done that for real.

As per Insider, the Oscar-nominated actor heard about a piglet who fell off a truck that was en route to a slaughterhouse. According to PETA, the animal was “scraped, bruised, and covered in mud” after tumbling from the vehicle. Cromwell then teamed with the animal rights group, where he is an honorary director, to transfer the pig to a sanctuary in Pennsylvania.

Cromwell also gave it an inevitable name: Babe.

“Having had the privilege of witnessing and experiencing pigs’ intelligence and inquisitive personalities while filming the movie Babe changed my life and my way of eating, and so I jumped at the chance to save this real-life Babe,” Cromwell said in a statement. “Every pig deserves to live in peace and joy at a sanctuary, choosing when to frolic, where to forage, and how to spend their time, yet few do.”

He added, “So you jumped off a truck so you wouldn’t be somebody’s Easter dinner? What a great thing to do. Nobody should have any animal for dinner. Invite the animals to dinner. That’s what I say.”

Cromwell had already been a vegetarian for 20 years when he took the role of kindly farmer Arthur Hoggett in the smash hit. (He reprised the role, albeit briefly, in its delightfully bonkers sequel.) Doing the film made him go next level, becoming an active animal activist. Earlier this month, he was asked by Page Six how many times he’s been arrested for various protests.

“Oh, I lose track,” he replied. “Seven or eight times, maybe more.”

(Via Insider)