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Franchi SPAS-12
The SPAS-12 is a combat shotgun manufactured by Italian firearms company Franchi from 1979 to 2000. The SPAS-12 is a dual-mode shotgun, adjustable for semi-automatic or pump-action operation. The SPAS-12 was sold to military and police users worldwide on the civilian market and has been featured in many movies, TV shows, and video games. Originally envisioned as a dedicated and rugged military shotgun, the SPAS acronym initially stood for Special Purposes Automatic Shotgun, but was later renamed to Sporting Purpose Automatic Shotgun to get around the United States' then-stringent laws on milspec arms sale to civilians. Importation of the SPAS-12 into the United States ceased in 1994 following the advent of the Assault Weapons Ban, and official production stopped in 2000. The SPAS-12 has since been succeeded by the Franchi SPAS-15, which has also been discontinued.
Owing to its impressive appearance and then-innovative dual-mode operation, the SPAS-12 is often depicted in media as a "hero's gun" or advanced/prototype weapon of sorts, and if said media features a Spec Ops and/or PMC unit, they will more often than not have access to a surplus of these guns. Films and video games made during the latter half of the last century often has the SPAS-12 being used as a police shotgun, which is not incorrect, however such a sight in reality is rare. In reality, however, the SPAS-12 was plagued with a plethora of technical shortcoming that made it impractical and unpopular among law enforcement units. Most of the complaints were directed towards its heavy weight, its fragile safety mechanism that is prone to breaking and/or not working half the time, the stiffness of the forearm in pump-action mode, and the reliability issues when using underpowered loads in semi-auto. Another issue that is often overlooked in media is how unwieldy it is to reload the weapon, as it requires the user to upend the shotgun and depress the button on the side to release the loading elevator before any shell could be inserted into the weapon. Most depictions in games simply has the user jamming additional buckshots into the weapon while ignoring the release button entirely.
The SPAS-12 is often depicted as using regular buckshots in pump-action mode in most appearances, which is not strictly wrong. It is, however, when the gun is occasionally depicted as semi-automatic but still cycles underpowered loads as normal. Certain video games also oddly has the player character rack the pump while the weapon is in semi-automatic, which is not possible.
The SPAS-12 shotgun has appeared in the following films, television series, video games, and anime used by the following actors:
Specifications
(1979 - 2000)
- Type: Shotgun
- Caliber(s): 12 gauge
- Weight: 9.7 lbs (4.4 kg)
- Length: 41 in (104.1 cm)
- Barrel length(s): 22 in (54.6 cm)
- Capacity: 5, 6, or 8-round tube magazine +1 chambered
- Fire Modes: Pump-Action, Semi-Auto
Film
| Title | Actor | Character | Note | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Terminator | Arnold Schwarzenegger | The Terminator | 1984 | |
| Blastfighter | Michael Sopkiw | Jake "Tiger" Sharp | With sniper scope and night vision device | 1984 |
| Exterminator 2 | A thug | 1984 | ||
| Brazil | Ministry of Information Troops | 1985 | ||
| Cop's Honor (Parole de Flic) | Stéphane Ferrara | Abel Salem | 1985 | |
| Hold-Up | Montreal SWAT | 1985 | ||
| The Hitcher | Rutger Hauer | John Ryder | 1986 | |
| The Hitcher | C. Thomas Howell | Jim Halsey | 1986 | |
| The Wraith | Modified with LEDs on the heatshield | 1986 | ||
| Legacy of Rage | Brandon Lee | Brandon Ma | 1986 | |
| RoboCop | Detroit SWAT officer | 1987 | ||
| Beverly Hills Cop II | John Ashton | Sgt. John Taggart | 1987 | |
| A Better Tomorrow II | Chow Yun-Fat | Ken Lee | 1987 | |
| Let Sleeping Cops Lie | French police officers | 1988 | ||
| Cohen and Tate | Adam Baldwin | Tate | 1989 | |
| Hardware | Dylan McDermott | Moses | 1990 | |
| La Femme Nikita | cop | 1990 | ||
| If Looks Could Kill | SWAT officers | 1991 | ||
| Highlander II: The Quickening | General Katana's men | 1991 | ||
| Jurassic Park | Bob Peck | Robert Muldoon | 1993 | |
| Sam Neill | Dr. Alan Grant | |||
| RoboCop 3 | CCH Pounder | Bertha | 1993 | |
| Cyber Tracker | Seen in armory | 1994 | ||
| Dead Weekend | TWF soldier | with stock removed | 1995 | |
| Virtuosity | Denzel Washington | Lt. Parker Barnes | 1995 | |
| Bad Boys | An Assassin | 1995 | ||
| Jumanji | on display | 1995 | ||
| Mercenary | Olivier Gruner | Capt. Karl 'Hawk' May | 1996 | |
| Mercenary | One of the Alan's mercenaries | 1996 | ||
| Original Gangstas | Ron O'Neal | Bubba | 1996 | |
| The Lost World: Jurassic Park | Hunter | 1997 | ||
| The Rage | Lorenzo Lamas | FBI Special Agent Nick Travis | 1997 | |
| The Rage | Kristen Cloke | FBI Special Agent Kelly McCord | 1997 | |
| The Rage | Sheriff's deputies | 1997 | ||
| The Matrix | Keanu Reeves | Neo | 1999 | |
| Carrie-Anne Moss | Trinity | |||
| In China They Eat Dogs | Slavko Labovic | Ratco | 1999 | |
| Snatch | Robby Gee | Vincent | 2000 | |
| Battle Royale(Film) | Shogo Kawada | 2000 | ||
| Ghosts of Mars | Pam Grier | Commander Helena Braddock | 2001 | |
| Ice Cube | James 'Desolation' Williams | |||
| Lara Croft: Tomb Raider | seen in Lara's gun cabinet | 2001 | ||
| 3000 Miles to Graceland | Kevin Costner | Murphy | 2001 | |
| Warriors (Guerreros) | Blerim Gjoci | Albanian leader | 2002 | |
| 2009: Lost Memories | JBI SWAT | 2002 | ||
| Christmas Rush | Dean Cain | Cornelius Morgan | 2002 | |
| Santino Buda | Simulus | |||
| Chris Benson | Al Quigley | |||
| Redemption | Lam's thug | 2002 | ||
| Underworld | Michael Sheen | Lucian | 2003 | |
| I, Robot | Chi McBride | Lt. John Bergin | 2004 | |
| Doom | Seen in an armory | 2005 | ||
| The Departed | One of Costello's thugs | with fixed stock | 2006 | |
| Babylon A.D. | A soldier | 2008 | ||
| A Dangerous Man | Chinese thug | 2009 | ||
| Crank: High Voltage | Orlando gang member | 2009 | ||
| New Kids Nitro | Wesley van Gaalen | Rikkert | stock folded and butt-hook removed | 2011 |
| Huub Smit | Richard | stock folded and butt-hook removed | ||
| Interview with a Hitman | Stephen Marcus | Traffikant | 2012 | |
| 3 Days to Kill | is seen in Ethan Runner's safe | 2014 | ||
| Brick Mansions | Tremaine's men | 2014 |
Television
| Show Title | Actor | Character | Note/Episode | Air Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hunter - Season 1 | Fred Dryer | Hunter | 1984-1985 | |
| Stepfanie Kramer | Dee Dee McCall | |||
| Hunter - Season 2 | Fred Dryer | Hunter | 1985-1986 | |
| Miami Vice - Season 1 | Jim Zubiena | Ludovici Armstrong | Ep. "The Hit List" | 1984-1985 |
| Jaime Escobar | Ep. "The Maze" | |||
| Miami Vice - Season 2 | A pirate | Ep. "Trust Fund Pirates" | 1985-1986 | |
| Miami Vice - Season 3 | Reb Brown | Reb Gustafson | Ep. "Viking Bikers from Hell" | 1986-1987 |
| Police officers and SRT members | Ep. "Cuba Libre", "Viking Bikers from Hell" | |||
| Star Trek: Deep Space Nine | A terrorist | 1993-1999 | ||
| Star Trek: Voyager | Clayton Murray | Porter | Ep. "Future's End" (S3E8) | 1995-2001 |
| Bugs | Ep. "Stealth" | 1995-1999 | ||
| Alarm für Cobra 11 - Die Autobahnpolizei | Various bad guys | Several episodes | 1996-present | |
| V.I.P. | Seen in Vallery's armory | 1998-2002 | ||
| Stargate SG-1 - Season 3 | Richard Dean Anderson | O´Neill | "Nemesis" (S3E21) | 1999 - 2000 |
| Christopher Judge | Teal'c | "Nemesis" (S3E21) | ||
| Julie Lescaut | French SWAT | "La tentation de Julie" (S11E04) | 2001 | |
| Stargate SG-1 - Season 5 | Richard Dean Anderson | O´Neill | "Menace" (S5E19) | 2001- 2002 |
| Christopher Judge | Teal'c | "Menace" (S5E19) | ||
| Don S. Davis | George Hammond | "Menace" (S5E19) | ||
| My Name is Earl | Juliette Lewis | Jesse | "The Bounty Hunter" (S1E21) | 2005 |
| Hokkaido Police. Russian Department (Politsiya Khokkaydo. Russkiy otdel) | S.A.T. | 2007-2011 | ||
| Blue Bloods | Bank robber | "Officer Down" (S1E04) | 2010-Present | |
| Bullet in the Face | Racken's henchman | with stock removed (S01E06) | 2012 | |
| The Walking Dead - Season 5 | Unknown | Alexandrian Resident | "Forget" (S5E13) | 2015 |
| The Walking Dead - Season 6 | Seen in the Alexandria Armory; "Now" (S6E05) | 2015 | ||
| The Walking Dead - Season 7 | Norman Reedus | Daryl Dixon | "Service" (S7E04) | 2016 |
| Savior Member | "Service" (S7E04) |
Video Games
| Game Title | Referred as | Mods | Note | Release Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The World Is Not Enough | "Frinesi Special 12" | incorrectly shown as full auto | 2000 | |
| Conflict: Desert Storm | "Franchi SPAS-12 Combat Shotgun" | 2002 | ||
| 007: Nightfire | "Frinesi Automatic 12" | incorrectly shown as full auto | 2002 | |
| Army Of Two | "FSPS-12" | 2008 | ||
| Black | Short version | 2006 | ||
| Alliance of Valiant Arms | 2007 | |||
| S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl | "SPSA14" | 2007 | ||
| The Specialists | ||||
| Area-51 | "M-170 "Hammer" Combat Shotgun" | 2005 | ||
| 7.62 High Calibre | "SPAS-12" | 2008 | ||
| Chernobyl Terrorist Attack | 2011 | |||
| Code of Honor 3: Desperate Measures | not usable | 2009 | ||
| Battlefield: Bad Company | 2008 | |||
| Battlefield: Bad Company 2 | "SPAS-12 Combat" | 2010 | ||
| Battlefield 3 | 2011 | |||
| Black Mesa | Incorrectly depicted as able to "double fire," as if the tube magazine is a second barrel. | 2012 | ||
| Bloody Good Time | "Shotgun" | 2010 | ||
| Splinter Cell: Conviction | Suppressed | 2010 | ||
| Half-Life | Incorrectly depicted as able to "double fire," as if the tube magazine is a second barrel. | 1998 | ||
| Half-Life 2 | Incorrectly depicted as able to "double fire," as if the tube magazine is a second barrel. | 2004 | ||
| Kane and Lynch: Dead Men | "SP12 Shotgun" | 2007 | ||
| Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days | "Gras-12" | 2010 | ||
| Hitman: Blood Money | "SP12 Shotgun" | 2006 | ||
| Hitman 2: Silent Assassin | "SP12" | 2002 | ||
| Hitman: Contracts | 2004 | |||
| Stranglehold | 2007 | |||
| Grand Theft Auto: Vice City | "S.P.A.S 12" | 2002 | ||
| Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas | "Combat Shotgun" | 2004 | ||
| Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories | "Combat Shotgun" | 2005 | ||
| Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories | "Combat Shotgun" | 2006 | ||
| Grand Theft Auto IV | Seen in the hands of a police officer during a loading screen, but not in the game itself | 2008 | ||
| F.E.A.R | "VK-12 combat shotgun" | shown to hold 12 rounds at a time | 2005 | |
| Rainbow Six: Rogue Spear | full-auto | 1999 | ||
| Rainbow Six: Vegas | 2006 | |||
| Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 | 2008 | |||
| Resident Evil: Code Veronica | 2000 | |||
| Resident Evil Outbreak | 2004 | |||
| Resident Evil Survivor | 2000 | |||
| Splinter Cell | used by hostile NPCs | 2002 | ||
| Splinter Cell: Double Agent | used by hostile NPCs | 2006 | ||
| Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty | Caution and Alert modes | 2001 | ||
| 24: The Game | "Gray MK5" | 2006 | ||
| Project IGI: I'm Going In | 2000 | |||
| Project IGI 2: Covert Strike | 2003 | |||
| Urban Terror | 2007 | |||
| Uncharted: Drake's Fortune | 2007 | |||
| Söldner: Secret Wars | 2004 | |||
| Freedom Fighters | 2003 | |||
| Far Cry 2 | 12-round magazine | 2008 | ||
| Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker | 2010 | |||
| Left 4 Dead 2 | "Combat Shotgun" | holds 10 rounds, w/ the tactical flashlight and optional laser sight | 2009 | |
| Call of Duty: Black Ops | can fire Dragon's Breath incendiary rounds | 2010 | ||
| GoldenEye 007 (2010) | 2010 | |||
| Counter-Strike Online | "SPAS-12" | 2011 | ||
| Tactical Ops: Assault on Terror | "SPS12" | 2002 | ||
| Jurassic Park: Trespasser | 1998 | |||
| World in Conflict | Cutscenes only | 2007 | ||
| Uncharted 3 | 2011 | |||
| The 3rd Birthday | 2010 | |||
| Warface | 2013 | |||
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 | pump-action only; capable of equipping suppressor, foregrip, and/or various sights | 2009 | ||
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 | 2011 | |||
| Code of Honor | 2007 | |||
| Dead Island | 2011 | |||
| Rogue Warrior | 2009 | |||
| S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky | 2008 | |||
| Wheelman | 2009 | |||
| The Typing of the Dead: Overkill | Automatic Shotgun | 2013 | ||
| The Expendables 2: Videogame | 2012 | |||
| Call of Duty: Black Ops II | 2012 | |||
| Far Cry 3 | 2012 | |||
| Uncharted: Golden Abyss | 2011 / 2012 | |||
| 007: Legends | 2012 | |||
| Tomb Raider (2013) | 2013 | |||
| The Showdown Effect | 2013 | |||
| Ghost Recon: Phantoms | 2014 | |||
| Survarium | SPAS-12 | 2014 | ||
| Far Cry 4 | 2014 | |||
| Contract Wars | 2014 | |||
| Rainbow Six: Siege | SPAS-12 | Red Dot Sight, Holographic Sight, Reflex Sight, Laser | Semi-automatic mode only | 2016 |
Anime
| Title | Character | Note | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burn Up! | Maki | With stock and butt hook | 1991 |
| Spriggan | Jean Jacquemonde | 1998 | |
| Vandread | BC | 2000-2001 | |
| Noir | Paolo | 2001 | |
| Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex | Marco | 2002-2003 | |
| Burn-Up Scramble | Maya Jingu | 2004 | |
| Blood+ | Red Shield personnel | 2005 | |
| Boondocks, The | 2005-2014 | ||
| Black Lagoon | Roberta | Mocked up as a parasol | 2006 |
| Asobi ni Ikuyo: Bombshells from the Sky | Manami | Short barrelled version | 2010 |
See Also
- Franchi - A list of all firearms manufactured by Franchi.