The relationship between director and actor in moviemaking is a fascinating one. Common wisdom suggests that these two creative forces need to see eye to eye to make the best movies together, and this was certainly the case for John Ford, the director of choice for The Duke, John Wayne.
However, Wayne once worked with a director he disagreed with on a fundamental level on just about every aspect of life, and this helmer was adamant that he didn’t want Wayne for his movie – and yet, they produced one of the iconic star’s most fondly remembered pictures.
When director Mark Rydell was given an unpublished manuscript in the early 1970s by an agent, he had just directed his first two pictures, both of which were nominated for Academy Awards. As he read the first 15 pages of the novel, entitled The Cowboys, he immediately knew he wanted to turn it into a movie. The story – by William Dale Jennings – was about a rancher who needs to replace his ranch hands before a 400-mile cattle drive, so he walks into the local school and hires a batch of students for the gruelling task.
“He’s got 1,500 head of cattle to get to market, and he walks into a schoolhouse,” Rydell chuckled incredulously to The Hollywood Interview. “I knew I had a movie right there.”
For the lead part of the rancher Wil Anderson, Rydell knew precisely who he wanted: George C Scott, who had just won ‘Best Actor’ at the Oscars for his commanding lead performance in Patton. To his chagrin, though, Warner Brothers pushed him to cast Wayne because it had a deal with the Duke at the time. Rydell insisted, “I don’t want him for my picture,” but executive John Calley suggested, “Let’s just go meet with him. He really wants to do it.”
Before the director knew it, he was on the Warner company jet flying to Mexico to talk to a legendary star he had no interest in. W ith a wry smile, Rydell added that his trip on the plane was “charged to my Cowboys budget. Nothing’s free!”
In truth, Rydell’s opposition to Wayne wasn’t so much about his acting or star persona – it was his politics. “He was the exact opposite of all my ideals,” Rydell explained. “He was very right-wing, one of the founders of the black list in the 50s, and I was this Jewish musician from the Bronx with pretty liberal views.”
So, when Rydell arrived for the meeting with Wayne, he was already spoiling for a fight. He admitted to being ready to jump down Wayne’s throat if he said anything he disagreed with and was fully prepared to intensely dislike the man. To his shock, though, Wayne reached out his massive paw to shake his hand, and politely said, “I’d really appreciate it if you gave me the chance to play this part, sir.”
The meeting that followed saw Rydell be “completely seduced” by Wayne, who was charming, humble, and, as Calley had suggested, truly interested in playing Anderson. Rydell and Wayne made a deal that day – “Let’s never talk about politics, let’s just talk art” – and the Duke officially signed on.
Wayne’s charm offensive wasn’t just reserved for the meeting, though. By the end of the shoot, Rydell had done a complete 180 on the star, who was the consummate professional and referred to him as “sir” the entire time. Rydell gushed, “He was fabulous; the first guy on the set every morning, and the last guy to leave at night. This man I had loathed…I had disagreed with every position he’d ever taken, but I learned a lot from him about determination and commitment.”
To Rydell’s delight, he revealed Wayne was also amazing with the children in the cast. “He loved being with those kids,” remembered the director. “And they adored him as well. They climbed all over him like he was jungle, Jim.” In addition, any time Rydell was with Wayne in public, he marvelled at how the star treated his fans with respect and dignity, never once shirking an opportunity to make their day.
“We shot it all around Santa Fe, and to walk into a restaurant there with John Wayne,” he reminisced. “Everybody came over for autographs, and I never saw him turn away a single fan.”