Detroit unveils RoboCop statue for ‘RoboCop Day’

Back in 2011, a hubbub began in Detroit around erecting a RoboCop statue to honor the Motor City's greatest resident. After all, went the tweet, "Philadelphia has a statue of Rocky & RoboCop would kick Rocky's butt." Today, we find out if that's true—in terms of statues, of course.

For, as you may know, today marks the official "Robocop Day," an honor owed to the DVD release of the RoboCop remake from earlier this year. And, naturally, there is no better way to celebrate such an occasion than with an enormous statue of a hyper-violent android.

But wait, there's more: In addition to the RoboCop statue, Detroit residents will get a meet-and-greet with their hero, and, later, they'll get to see him throw out the first pitch at today's Tigers game at Comerica Park. I mean, just look at that schedule:

12:00 PM: RoboCop and Detroit Police Department arrivals

12:10 PM: RoboCop presentation and statue announcement

12:30 PM: 1:00 p.m. – Fan photo opportunities with RoboCop

1:00 PM: RoboCop and Detroit Police Department departure to protect the City of Detroit

7:00 PM: RoboCop throws out the first pitch at Comerica Park 

But despite all the fanfare, there is not yet a permanent home for Detroit's RoboCop statue. Hardly a surprise, considering then-Mayor Dave Bing's tabling of the idea. However, nonprofit Imagination Station raised $50,000 via Kickstarter to have the statue made, its efforts carried by the online fervor the above-mentioned tweet created.

For those wondering, the statue is based off of Paul Verhoeven's 1987 version—much like our Rocky is based off the 1976 original. Still, though, it seems pretty clear that the superior movie has yielded the better statue.

UPDATE: Welp, they canceled the RoboCop statue's debut. I guess Rocky really did win this round. As per a press release:

Please be advised, ROBOCOP's Prime Directives have changed and today's scheduled presentation and statue announcement at the Detroit Police Department has been cancelled.  We know that fans have been eagerly awaiting news on the effigy honoring one of Detroit's finest and we look forward to sharing those details in the near future. 

June 3rd remains #ROBOCOPDay in Detroit, with ROBOCOP making visits throughout the city in celebration of the Blu-ray and DVD release of the film.  Additionally ROBOCOP will head over to Comerica Park, participating in a meet and greet with fans and throwing out the first pitch at 7:00pm before the Detroit Tigers game against the Toronto Blue Jays.  The first 10,000 fans in attendance will receive a commemorative ROBOCOP poster as they enter the stadium with additional surprises throughout the evening.

[SlashFilm]