Primate welfare and conservation charity speak out against monkey actor in new Pirates of the Caribbean film
17 December 2014
Wild Futures primate welfare and conservation charity have spoken out with serious concerns surrounding the use of a monkey in the next Pirates of the Caribbean film. The monkey, a capuchin, will have to be transported to Australia, where the filming will take place and undergo 30 days quarantine. During the transport, quarantine and filming period, this monkey will be denied a natural habitat and Wild Futures believes that these distressing and damaging conditions are not justified, especially knowing that the same result could be obtained with computer-generated imagery. They consider using wild animals as ‘actors’ to be an outdated practice and say that it has serious conservation and welfare consequences.
The charity is writing an open letter to the producers and directors of the film to ask them to become pioneers in refusing to use wild animals as actors. They are encouraging them to take a pledge to never use a performing wild animal in any future production at www.animalpledge.org .
Please find the letter below:
We are saddened to learn that you are planning on using a wild animal, a capuchin monkey, in your up-coming film “Pirates of the Caribbean 5”. We are contacting you to urge you to choose to prevent unnecessary suffering and position yourselves as pioneers in refusing to use wild animals as actors. With the technology currently available, there is no need for such a practice and the public increasingly agrees with this viewpoint.
Wild Futures is very concerned about the use of wild animal “actors” and in particular the use of primates. We are a leading primate welfare and conservation charity that supports projects around the world, works with governments to protect primates and run a sanctuary in the UK for victims of the pet and entertainment industries. We are sure that you would never deliberately abuse any animal, but believe that these situations arise because of a lack of understanding or knowledge of the reality for primate “actors”.
We are calling on you to do something very worthwhile. The Pirates of the Caribbean films are seen by millions and you have the opportunity to influence both your viewers and the lives of thousands of non-human primates around the world that fall victim to the primate pet trade and entertainment industries. Forty-eight percent of primates are endangered in the wild and the issues of conservation and welfare are inextricably interlinked.
Please read on to see why we are so passionate about this:
The use of wild animal ‘actors’ is a damaging and destructive practice that is condemned by zoologists, animal welfare scientists and conservationists worldwide. Such concerns go far beyond the treatment of the animals on-set: the use of wild animals as actors is in many cases highly detrimental to welfare of the individuals involved in ways that can manifest throughout their lifetimes, whilst studies show that the use of wild animals as actors may even have a negative impact on the survival of animal populations in the wild, by increasing demand for that species as pets and/or by diminishing concern for their conservation in the wild.
Wild animals used as actors may appear to be well-treated on set or during training (though there is plenty of evidence that this is not always the case), but our concern is that the very processes employed to make these animals tractable and safe to work with involves depriving them of their natural “identity”, opportunities for natural behaviour as well as being detrimental to the animals’ health and welfare. Young primates, for example, are taken away from their mothers before weaning age, which can cause lasting psychological damage and adversely affect physical development of the young monkey’s brain. The youngsters are then raised in a highly unnatural social and physical environment in which they do not have the chance to develop into healthy, well-adjusted individuals. Instead, as with many wild animals in captivity, they can develop a host of abnormal behaviours which range from pacing or rocking (as often seen in conjunction with psychological disorders in humans), to excessive aggression or extreme submission, to self-injurious behaviour. Even the luckiest of these primates often lack the skills that are a vital part of living in a social group and thus spend much of their long lives completely isolated from any contact with other primates. These same problems can be seen in a wide range of animals used in performance.
The capuchin that you intend on using may not yet manifest these problems. He/she will certainly have been taken from his/her mother, which can only have caused huge distress to both. But this is not just about one individual; please think of the example set and the widespread resulting suffering. In addition, please consider the stress this individual will undergo whilst being transported to Australia and undergoing 30 days in quarantine.
There are many sanctuaries around the world that could show you first hand the physical and emotional damage that results from the pet and entertainment industries. We would certainly be happy to show you or one of your representatives around Wild Futures’ Monkey Sanctuary in the UK or put you in touch with a facility in the USA.
The public increasingly agrees with our stance in condemning any use of wild animals as actors. We ask you, with the following you have and the influence you can create, with all the potential for transforming this situation into something good by taking a stance, to please make the compassionate and well-informed decision to end your use of performing wild animals and decide to not use a primate for your up-coming film.
Please feel free to contact us if you would like further information on any of this. Thank you for taking time to read this letter. We hope that you make a thoughtful decision on this.
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Notes to Editors:
About Wild Futures
Wild Futures (Charity reg. No. 1102532) is the educational and environmental charity promoting the welfare and conservation of primates as well as working to end the abuse of primates in captivity. Its flagship project, The Monkey Sanctuary, in Cornwall, is home to victims of the primate pet trade. The Monkey Sanctuary is the only Sanctuary in Europe accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS) and is a founder and board member of EARS (European Alliance of Rescue Centres and Sanctuaries). Drawing on 50 years of primate expertise, Wild Futures acts as an advisory body to sanctuaries and conservation organisations in the UK and overseas and advises DEFRA on UK animal welfare legislation.
For more information or pictures, contact:
For further information and details, please contact
Tel; 0844 272 1271
www.wildfutures.org