People might think that Hollywood is a bed of roses and actors and directors have a gala time, making movies and shows while enjoying fame and success. But, reality is much different. Behind the scenes, there have been various occasions where actors and directors have refused to see eye-to-eye. On that note, here’s a compilation of 20 such times when actors and directors created tensions on set.
1. Edward Norton and Tony Kaye
While shooting for American History X, director Tony Kaye had multiple conflicts with people behind the scenes and with actor Edward Norton. The director was not happy with New Line Cinema’s desire to make changes to the film and this resulted in the studio taking away his editing rights. Norton took part in the editing though, which enraged Kaye further.
2. Val Kilmer and Marlon Brando and Richard Stanley and John Frankenheimer
The sets of The Island of Dr. Moreau were stressful. So much so, that there is even a documentary about the struggles the film encountered during production. First, director Stanley struggled with actor Kilmer, next, when Frankenheimer came as the director, Kilmer and Brando wreaked havoc with their attitude. Both actors, Brando and Kilmer, even got into a fight with each other.
3. Bill Murray and Harold Ramis
While filming Groundhog Day, Bill Murray was reportedly in the midst of divorce, which led him to come to sets late and have anger outbursts. This caused considerable tension between him and director, Harold Ramis, even though the two had a friendly relationship in the past. The two also argued about creative direction. After not speaking to each other for decades, they patched up in 2010.
4. Bruce Willis and Kevin Smith
During the shooting of Cop Out, director Kevin Smith was eager to work with his favorite actor, Bruce Willis. But sadly, things did not work out between the two, as Smith stated that Willis refused to cooperate for a poster shoot, even being abusive. Smith later apologized for his comments when Willis was diagnosed with aphasia.
5. Gene Hackman and Wes Anderson
During the filming of The Royal Tenenbaums, Gene Hackman had quite the temper. It was reported that the revered actor insulted director Wes Anderson multiple times. So much so, that co-actor Bill Murray had to step in between and protect the director from Hackman’s outbursts. The reason for this as told by Anderson, was that Hackman was not happy with his pay and that he need to be on set all day.
6. Shelley Duvall and Stanley Kubrick
Another director that was known for his perfectionist and abusive attitude was Stanley Kubrick. Even though The Shining was a massive success, his treatment of actress Shelley Duvall was tyrannical on sets. The director argued with her repeatedly and isolated her from the rest of the crew. The stress even caused Duvall’s hair to fall out and she became ill. These tensions between the two made headlines.
7. Brigitte Bardot and Henri-Georges Clouzot
French director Henri-Georges Clouzot is famous in France for his suspense thrillers. But, the director is also infamous for being abusive towards his female actors. On the set of La Vérité, news was received that the director gave actress Brigitte Bardot, a heavy dose of sleeping pills under the guise of painkillers, as a scene required the actress to pass out. The overdosing led Bardot to seek emergency treatment, which obviously caused a rift between the two.
8. Kate Winslet and James Cameron
Acclaimed director James Cameron is also known for his difficult attitude. During the filming of the famous movie Titanic, the director traumatized actress Kate Winslet. It is reported that the director caused the actress to suffer from hypothermia due to his grueling perfectionism. The actress also stated that she would have to be paid handsomely to work with the director again.
9. Ray Fisher and Joss Whedon
Things were tense during the filming of Justice League as director Zack Snyder left and Joss Whedon came in to complete the project. But, Whedon made things more difficult. According to actor Ray Fisher, the director was abusive and unprofessional, which was enabled by DC Films president and producers. There was even a legal investigation into these claims and Fisher refused to play his role in subsequent films.
10. George Clooney and David O’Russell
David O’Russell carries the reputation of being one of the harshest directors to work with in Hollywood. On the set of The Three Kings, David continued to show his wrath as he repeatedly got angry at the crew members and the extras. Actor George Clooney had to ultimately step in to defend his co-workers, which even ended with a physical fight.
11. Faye Dunaway and Roman Polanski
The actress and director had an explosive altercation during the filming of Chinatown. During a scene, director Roman Polanski pulled Faye Dunaway’s hair because it was hampering his perfect shot. This obviously caused problems between the two. Even worse was Polanski’s refusal to let Dunaway use the bathroom during a scene, which caused the actress to reportedly fill a cup with her urine and fling it across the director’s face!
12. Tippi Hedren and Alfred Hitchcock
While universally famous for his movies, Alfred Hitchcock was also difficult to work with. During the filming of The Birds, the director made multiple advances towards actress Tippi Hedren, which were rebuffed. This enraged the director so much that he threatened to ruin her career. Hitchcock went a step further by replacing fake birds with real ones in the film’s final scene without Hedren’s knowledge. The actress had to be put on bed rest after all the stress.
13. Maria Schneider and Bernardo Bertolucci
The film Last Tango in Paris was in the news for all the wrong reasons. Apart from having mature themes, the film also included a graphic rape scene. Even though Schneider knew about the scene, she did not know that butter would be used by Marlon Brando’s character as a lubricant. The actress stated that it was humiliating and exploitative for her and refused to reconcile with director Bernardo Bertolucci.
14. Heather Donaghue and Eduardo Sánchez and Daniel Myrick
The Blair Witch Project is considered as one of the scariest horror movies in Hollywood and even though director-duo Sánchez and Myrick revolutionized the genre, they also tortured the cast, particularly actress Heather Donaghue. Fallouts occurred as the actress was not told about her tent being shaken in the dark, which traumatized her. The actors were not paid for their efforts, which led to Heather quitting Hollywood and changing her name.
15. Uma Thurman and Quentin Tarantino
During the shooting of Kill Bill, the otherwise friendly duo of Tarantino and Thurman had some issues. Actress Uma Thurman revealed that during a driving scene, she crashed a car which she knew had problems. Even though she did not want to film the stunt, director Tarantino insisted on having her behind the wheel, which traumatized her. She even suffered a lifelong injury because of the crash.
16. Leonardo DiCaprio and Alejandro Iñárritu
Obsessed with creating the perfect man vs nature movie in The Revenant, director Alejandro asked actor DiCaprio to submerge in freezing water, eat raw bison meat, and crawl inside the body of a dead horse! Reportedly, the director also fought with his producer and didn’t take appropriate safety measures. The director made sure that DiCaprio went through hell during the grueling shoot.
17. Ellen Burstyn and William Friedkin
Actress Ellen Burstyn is known for taking on complex roles. And for her character in the famous movie The Exorcist, she even suffered a lifelong back injury for the director’s sake. During one of the scenes of possession, director William Friedkin told his stunt coordinator to rig Burstyn’s harness to pull her in the air. This led to the actress getting injured.
18. Björk and Lars von Trier
News about actress Björk’s and director Trier’s drama came to light many years after the release of the critically acclaimed movie Dancer in the Dark. The actress stated that she suffered sexual harassment by a Danish director, thus pointing towards Trier. The director denied the allegations, but accepted that the two were not friends.
19. Klaus Kinski and Werner Herzog
During the shooting of Aguirre, the Wrath of God, there were many reports of clashes between actor Kinski and director Herzog over how Kinski should portray his character. Kinski is known for his volatile personality and even shot the tip of an extra’s finger because they were playing cards. Even though Kinski tried to leave, Herzog forced him to stay by threatening to harm the actor and himself.
20. Keira Knightley and John Carney
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Director Carney and actress Knightley worked together during the filming of Begin Again and the director remarked the actress for a “supermodel” and stated during an interview that she lacked self-analysis as an actor. Even though he later apologized, Knightley also remarked that it was difficult to work with the director and that the duo did not have friendly terms.
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