Clint Eastwood’s set feud over leading lady led to firing and Hollywood upheaval
Clint Eastwood had a fierce set feud over the affections of the leading lady that led to a firing and Hollywood upheaval that transformed the movie business to this day.
The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976): Official trailer
Back in 1976, Clint Eastwood starred in the anti-war revisionist Western, The Outlaw Josey Wales, which is on ITV4 this evening.
Set to release to coincide with the USA’s bicentennial, the movie takes place during and after the American Civil War.
The Hollywood star played the title role as a Missouri farmer turned Confederate soldier, seeking vengeance for the death of his family and later becoming an outlaw pursued by bounty hunters and Union troops.
Adapted from the 1972 novel The Rebel Outlaw: Josey Wales by Sonia Chernus and Philip Kaufman, the latter began the shoot as the film’s director before a feud between him and Eastwood saw his firing.
During filming at Lake Powell near Paria, Utah, Kaufman was meticulous about detail leading to serious disagreements with the star.
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One evening, Kaufman was insistent that he find a beer can to use as a prop in a scene. As left the set, Eastwood ordered cinematographer Bruce Surtees to get rolling as the sun was setting fast. Afterward a few takes, the star simply drove away even before the director had returned with the beer can.
To make matters more contentious, both Eastwood and Kaufman were vying for the affections of leading lady Sondra Locke (the actor’s future partner), even asking her out for dinner on the same night.
Eventually, Eastwood had had enough and two weeks into the shoot had producer Bob Daley fire Kaufman. The title star replaced him as director with Daley as his second-in-command, but this caused utter outrage back in Hollywood.
The Directors Guild of America, some top Hollywood executives and members of the cast and crew were furious with Eastwood for orchestrating Daley’s firing. After all, the filmmaker had worked very hard on the movie, including on all of pre-production, while Eastwood took sole director’s credit on the film.
The star and Warner Bros were pressured to back down, but refused, resulting in a fine of around $60,000 ($350,000 today). As a result, the DGA passed a new rule, called the Eastwood Rule, which prohibits an actor or producer from firing a movie’s director and taking over the role themselves. It remains in force today.
