Oscar-nominated actor James Cromwell, 73, is arrested for bursting into a board meeting at University of Wisconsin-Madison to protest against 'cat torture carried out in their labs'

James Cromwell has been arrested after bursting into a board meeting at the University of Wisconsin and claiming the school tortures cats for scientific research.

The actor is most famous for playing Farmer Arthur Hoggett in Babe, the film adaptation of Dick King-Smith's beloved novel The Sheep-Pig.

Cromwell was accompanied on the protest by PETA spokesperson Jeremy Beckham.

Scroll down to watch the protest



Mug shot: James Cromwell has been arrested for protesting cat torture at the University of Wisconsin-Madison

In a video posted online by PETA, Cromwell and Beckham are seen ambushing the meeting in a classroom while shouting and holding up signs.

A disturbing image on the signs shows a cat in a UW-Madison laboratory with metal implanted in its head.

Cromwell can be heard shouting: 'This is not science. This is torture. This is criminal.'

That'll do, James: The actor is best-known for playing Farmer Hoggett in the 1995 movie Babe, the film adaptation of Dick King-Smith's The Sheep-Pig

Meanwhile Beckham is then seen dropping to the floor and forcing his body to go limp as he yells his protests.

Although the staff members sat in the boardroom were visibly stunned by the incidents, not one of them responded to the protestors.

The two men were booked at a nearby police station and are expected to be charged for disorderly conduct, a spokesperson for the university told TMZ .

Fighting for what's right: James was joined by PETA spokesperson Jeremy Beckham for the protest

Making their mark: The pair ambushed a meeting and shouted their protests while brandishing signs

Cromwell was escorted out of the room in handcuffs while police dragged Beckham from the room, and the meeting resumed immediately afterwards.

Animal rights organisation PETA claims that 30 cats a year are starved, deafened and decapitated at the university.

What's more, the school has not even achieved its goals of improving human hearing with the research. UW-Madison denies the accusations.



Unfazed: While the regents were visibly stunned they had no other reaction and continued their meeting immediately afterwards

Illustrating their point: James and Jeremy held up signs with disturbing images of cats being experimented on

In a statement released following the protest, the director of the UW–Madison Research Animal Resources Center said: 'Today's events are just another attempt by outside activists to draw attention to a cause.

'They have attacked and distorted this research - which has very real benefits for people who are deaf - from every angle imaginable.

'Exhaustive independent investigation by the USDA, which regulates the use of animals in research, concluded that PETA's allegations are baseless.'

