LOS ANGELES, Aug 8 — Dean Cain is taking his hero act from Metropolis to the US-Mexico border.
The former Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman star is set to be sworn in as an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer, the BBC reported today — joining one of the most controversial law enforcement agencies in the United States.
Cain, who played TV’s Superman from 1993 to 1997, told Fox News yesterday: “I will be sworn in as an ICE agent asap.”
Already a sworn deputy sheriff and reserve police officer, he said the move came after his recruitment video for ICE went viral.
“I wasn’t part of ICE, but once I put that out there and you put a little blurb on your show, it went crazy,” he explained.
According to the BBC, the Department of Homeland Security will officially make him an “honorary ICE Officer” next month.
DHS assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin hailed the signing, saying: “Superman is encouraging Americans to become real-life superheroes by answering their country’s call to join the brave men and women of ICE to help protect our communities to arrest the worst of the worst.”
Cain says it’s about stepping up.
“People have to step up. I’m stepping up,” he told Fox News.
“Hopefully a whole bunch of other former officers, former ICE agents will step up, and we’ll meet those recruitment goals immediately and we’ll help protect this country.”
The BBC notes that ICE is in the middle of a massive hiring spree — looking for 10,000 more personnel to double its ranks.
The roles go beyond deportation officers, with openings for attorneys, criminal investigators and student visa adjudicators.
To sweeten the deal, the agency is offering up to US$50,000 (RM211,465) in bonuses and student loan help.
The push is part of US President Donald Trump’s pledge to increase deportations to one million a year, a promise that’s brought an uptick in immigration raids — and nationwide protests from critics who call them unlawful.
In true Hollywood style, the recruitment campaign comes with old-school propaganda posters. Think World War Two designs, stamped with “America Needs You” and “Defend the Homeland” alongside images of Trump, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and other officials.
By Wednesday, Noem told Fox News the campaign had pulled in over 80,000 applications — with ICE even scrapping the age limit to boost numbers.
With Cain’s induction next month, the man who once fought TV villains as Superman will be joining the real-life front line of US immigration enforcement — a role far removed from the red cape, but one that’s already making headlines.
