Did Paul Rudd Help Tackle That Dallas Airport Gay-Basher?

On Saturday, the entire Internet watched in horror and then cautious joy as a drunk and/or high man in the Dallas-Forth Worth airport assaulted a random bystander he believed was gay. The attacker was then quickly subdued by a crowd of people. The video, first posted by Raw Story, has been viewed nearly two million times. But only one person, comedian and friend of Jezebel Sara Benincasa, noticed that one of the guys tackling said gay-basher looks a lot like actor and decent-seeming human being Paul Rudd.

Here's the video once again, via Raw Story:

As you can see, the glassy-eyed gentleman attacks the guy in the pink shirt because he suspects him of being "a queer" and then, when asked why he did that, screams "Because America!" (It's great that a crowd of people worked to subdue him; slightly less great that an airport security guard can be seen meandering past him moments before he attacks the pink-shirted man, ignoring him as he screams threats and takes his sweatshirt off.)

In her viewing of the video, Benincasa noticed that around 1:30, one of the people dog-piling the man really, really looks like Paul Rudd. Like, a lot:

As Wonkette reported, another Twitter user, @msigs, found a girl who'd tweeted about seeing Paul Rudd that day, and got her to confirm he was wearing what he had on the video: a checked shirt and a sport coat.

However, that Twitter user appears to have seen Rudd on a flight out of Savannah, Georgia, and we don't know for sure that he stopped in Dallas. (Do people with Paul Rudd-level money really have layovers?)

So, the jury is still out on this one, even as the glorious #PaulRuddSavesLives hashtag is engulfing Twitter. But, if confirmed, it's going to be almost as great — and, let's be frank, arousing — as that time Ryan Gosling broke up a street fight.

http://jezebel.com/5833283/watch-...

Were you in the Dallas airport the other day? Did you see Paul Rudd tackle a gay-basher? Email me: anna.merlan@jezebel.com.

Update, 3:40 p.m.: Guys, much as it pains us to crush dreams like this, that's not Paul Rudd. Exhibit A is Ellojenn's post below, which shows a sharpened view of the mystery man. When not-blurry, he is pretty obviously Not Paul Rudd.http://jezebel.com/no-that-is-cle...

Exhibit B: Rudd's publicist told Vanity Fair that ain't him. Or, as Benincasa puts it:

Let's all collectively heave a sigh of disappointment and watch that Gosling video like ten more times. Sorry, everyone. So very sorry.

Update, 5:15: We've been contacted in the comments and via Twitter by the friends of the real Not Paul Rudd! His name is Ben Kravit, he lives in Dallas, and like everyone else involved in tackling this idiot, he seems like a good dude. Good work, Ben! Good work everyone! Except you, airport gay-basher. You need to sort your life out, seriously.

Blurry screengrab of possible — update, not! — Paul Rudd via Sarah Benincasa