--- title: "How Metallica put this unknown war movie on the map" description: "Heavy metal band Metallica made this unknown war movie famous. Learn more about how Johnny Got His Gun became a classic on We Are the Mighty." date: "2021-02-22" modified: "2021-02-22" authors: - name: "Bethaney Phillips" job_title: "Contributor, Veteran Spouse" link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/bethaneyphillips/" url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/mighty-movies/how-metallica-put-this-unknown-war-movie-on-the-map/" categories: - "Entertainment" - "Movies and TV" --- # How Metallica put this unknown war movie on the map ![Johnny got his gun, a movie popularized by Metallica]() The year was 1988. Metallica had been making their way into the hearts and stereos of rock lovers for the better part of seven years. And wanting to make a political statement, the band decided to write and release an anti-war song. The result was their hit One from the album ...And Justice for All. Lead vocalist James Hetflied and drummer Lars Ulrich penned the song together, telling the story of a World War I soldier. In the gruesome song, the soldier was injured badly by a landmine, with arms and legs taken with the explosion, wanting to die in order to end his agony. Anyone who knows anything about Metallica knows One went on to be a huge hit. In fact, it was their first top-40 song and reaching number one in Finland. Enter the song’s music video. By January of ‘89, Metallica’s music video for One began airing on MTV. What made it notable was the use of scenes from Johnny Got His Gun, a 1971 anti-war flick. The film was a box office failure and relatively unknown. Soon after its release, the video ranked number one on MTV; the band ended up winning multiple awards for the song. **Johnny Got His Gun goes viral** After the release of the video, fans started paying attention to the movie, turning it into a cult film. What’s even more interesting is that Metallica itself owned rights to the film. To avoid paying ongoing royalties for their music video, the band decided to buy rights outright, allowing them to replay their own video with ease. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ytMdjsEp4U It’s worth noting that after its original release in 1971, the film did not even recoup its budget at the box office. Despite Donald Sutherland staring, fans paid little attention -- and little in tickets, avoiding the film almost altogether. Once Metallica used its scenes, the film seemingly came out of the woodwork, selling copies by the dozens, and even sparking multiple remakes. Hetfield is quoted saying the movie Johnny Got His Gun was used for the music video because its storyline followed closely to the song’s theme. In fact, the band created their lyrics from the novel of the same title. To date, One remains one of Metallica’s most-played songs. It was the first song to win the category for Best Metal Performance at the Grammy’s. It’s also the most played song from their ...And Justice for All album. ## Author Bethaney Phillips has contributed to We Are the Mighty and MilSpouseFest since 2015, covering history and military family topics. She also served as the Interim Content and Digital Manager at MilSpouseFest in 2021. Now a veteran spouse, she spent six years in an active duty family and served as an SFRG leader. With a bachelor’s degree in English and Creative Writing, she has more than 15 years of experience in digital and print writing, focusing on researched pieces and human interest stories. She is also a regular contributor to Business Insider, covering family and parenting topics. Her work has been included on Business Insider, Yahoo, Military.com, and Manhattan Magazine. While continuing to freelance, she works as the founding editor of the Clay County Regional, a print and digital newspaper delivered to more than 5,500 recipients. She also serves as the Digital Director/News Director for Taylor Communications out of north-central Kansas. Bethaney spends her free time chasing her two elementary-aged boys, raising chickens, and reading fiction. ### Author social links [Twitter]() [WWW]()