James Cromwell Helps Save ‘Real-Life Babe’ from Getting Slaughtered

Actor James Cromwell stepped in to help with the rescue of a piglet just in time for Easter. The Succession star, who is also an honorary board member for PETA, is working with the animal rights organization to help secure a new home at the Indraloka Animal Sanctuary for a baby pig that had fallen out of a truck. He had been on his way to a facility where he’d be fattened for slaughter, but now, he’ll instead be living a much longer life after getting this second chance. Fittingly, the piglet has been named “Babe,” which is fitting, as Cromwell played Farmer Hoggett in the hit movie Babe, a role that inspired him to go vegan in real life.

Video footage of a Zoom meeting between baby Babe and Cromwell has also been released. While speaking to the small animal, Cromwell is reminded of the movie pig with the same name that he once knew, obviously referring to the film. It’s life imitating art in a particularly heartwarming way. The piglet cuddles in a blanket, fending off sleep as Cromwell softly tells him how he’ll soon be mingling with other “incredible animals.”

“I understand your name is Babe… I knew a pig named Babe,” Cromwell tells the piglet. “What a smart little pig she was… but you are too!”

The actor continued, “Nobody should ever have any animal for dinner. Invite the animals to dinner, that’s what I say. So, we’re going to go to a sanctuary, and you’re gonna meet a lot of other incredible animals. I’m looking forward to meeting you and all of the other animals, and I’ll see you there.”

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“Having had the privilege of witnessing and experiencing pigs’ intelligence and inquisitive personalities while filming the movie Babe, I jumped at the chance to give a real-life Babe a new lease on life,” Cromwell also said in a statement. “Every pig deserves to live out their life at a sanctuary, choosing when to frolic, where to forage, and how to spend their time.”

PETA hopes this story will help spread awareness about the “horrors of the meat industry and the importance of making compassionate choices.” While the real-life Babe has gotten to be very lucky, the same cannot be said for millions of other animals slaughtered for food every year. PETA estimates that by following Cromwell’s lead and going vegan, one person could spare nearly 200 animals’ lives per year.