Hollywood Heaters

It’s been a long-standing truism that you could tell which guns were popular in the movies during summer action movie season by which ones were in demand at the local gun store. The phenomenon dates back to the popularity of westerns in the ‘50s and ‘60s driving the introduction of Ruger’s single action revolvers, although probably the most famous example from that time period would be Clint Eastwood’s Dirty Harry movies keeping Smith & Wesson’s Model 29 on perpetual back order for years.

In the Eighties and Nineties, the sales of Beretta 92s and Desert Eagles were buoyed by their recurring roles as supporting actors in Hollywood shoot-‘em-ups, and Tommy Lee Jones’ famous turn as a U.S. Marshall on the big screen was a tremendous boost for the popularity of the Austrian pistol.

All this product placement was hardly ever overtly acknowledged for the advertising it was then, which is what made the most noticeable ad campaign of NRAAM ’19 all the more noticeable because you couldn’t swing a dog without knocking over an ad for John Wick III.

Grayguns was touting the role played by their modified Sig Sauer P365 in the movie. At Glock’s booth, there were a pair of display cases featuring the Taran Tactical-modded hardware that had studded the franchise thus far.

Spotted at both the Safariland and Streamlight booths were fully-stocked replica storage lockers, with the full panoply of Hollywood’s baddest rogue assassin nestled neatly inside.

A contest at the Brownells booth went all this one better, promising a lucky winner the chance to be John Wick for a day. The prize package not only included a replica of Wick’s carbine from the second movie and a tour of the Taran Tactical facility (including airfare there and back) but also a half-day’s training under the tutelage of Taran himself.

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