Clint Eastwood, is an American actor, film director, producer, and composer with a net worth of over $375 million. His accolades include four Academy Awards, four Golden Globes, three Cesar Awards, and an AFI Lifetime Achievement Award. But before Eastwood reached the pinnacle of his career, he was known to take risks for some projects. Did you know his agent discouraged him from appearing on A Fistful of Dollars?
It was assumed to be a bad step for his career. Clint Eastwood’s agent was strongly against him appearing in “A Fistful of Dollars”. After the project, Eastwoodcalled his production company, ‘Malpaso’, which is Spanish for ‘bad step’.
What are the Movies That Put Clint Eastwood on the Map?
In 1964, Clint grasped his first top role in A Fistful of Dollars. The movie, which was first released in Italy, was made on an estimated budget of $200,000 and collected to earn a domestic gross of $14.5 million, becoming a box-office hit. And, the actor earned a mere $15,000 from the film.
In 1966, the actor starred in the all-time famous movie The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. The movie was again a top-grosser, and for this, Eastwood accepted a $250K paycheck. Reportedly, he also requested a Ferrari as part of his pay.
By 1970, the actor moved towards directing and had the opportunity to direct several box-office sensations. In fact, also, his directorial debut, Play Misty for Me, in which he starred too, the earnings reached $10.6 million. Eastwood maintained thriving right from the start and never truly stopped throughout his career and is still quite active in the industry. (Source: Wealth Peeps)
How Did Clint Eastwood Get the Lead Role in “A Fistful of Dollars”?
James Coburn the actor from The Great Escape wanted $25,000 to star in the film, which was more than the producers could afford. Charles Bronson might have accepted the role if he didn’t think the script was terrible, but Eastwood settled to take the lead role for a smaller fee of $15,000. (Source: Mental Floss)
What Roles did Clint Eastwood Turn Down Throughout His Career?
By the time Sean Connery left the 007 franchise, Eastwood was offered the iconic role, but he declined.
The president of Warner Brothers also invited him to play Superman, but he declined that, too. Stating he was not interested and couldn’t see himself in that role.
I was like, Superman? Nah, Nah, that’s not for me. Not that there’s anything wrong with it. It’s for somebody, but not me.
Clint Eastwood
Francis Ford Coppola offered him Martin Sheen’s character in Apocalypse Now, but he didn’t want to go to the Philippines for 16 weeks.
Eastwood owned the film rights to Nothing Lasts Forever, the book Die Hard was based on, with the intent to star in the film rendition. (Source: Mental Floss)
What is Clint Eastwood Like as a Director?
When Eastwood directs, he doesn’t storyboard, rehearse, modify the script after it’s completed, or listen to test screening outcomes. He doesn’t say action on set because he feels that it spooks the actors. He compared it to the same way horses get anxious. Instead of saying cut, he says let’s move on.
As a director, it’s safe to say he isn’t the favorite of several actors. Matt Damon once asked him for a second take, Eastwood snarky replied by asking if he was going to waste everyone’s time. When Kevin Costner took his time arriving out of his trailer during a shooting on A Perfect World Eastwood just had an extra pretend to be Costner’s character in a shot of him walking through a field, with the camera up close so his image was blurred. Costner was not pleased. (Source: Mental Floss)