Every actor wants to be a popular star, but not every star is a popular actor. That dichotomy has been at the heart of Hollywood since the beginning, and John Wayne made a few enemies when he reigned as the biggest draw in the business and the face of the mainstream western.
‘The Duke’ had his friends, and he kept them close. He made multiple pictures with the likes of John Ford, Henry Hathaway, James Stewart, Ward Bond, Maureen O’Hara, Harry Carey, Ben Johnson, and more, forming an inner circle that stuck with him through thick and thin and could be relied on to answer the call whenever he wanted them involved in a picture.
Wayne’s outspoken political beliefs were one of the biggest sticking points for any potential collaborators. He was the face of the industry’s anti-communist sentiment and had no issues calling out co-stars or crew members he believed to be sympathetic to their cause. Of course, personal differences could be put aside in the name of professional success, with Kirk Douglas the perfect example.
He was instrumental in ending the blacklist when he fought for Dalton Trumbo to be credited on Spartacus, but he also made three films with ‘The Duke’. They existed at opposite ends of the political spectrum and weren’t always on the best of terms, but there always remained a mutual respect that occasionally blossomed into full-blown friendship.
However, not everyone was so keen on sharing the screen with Wayne. Charlton Heston was offered a role in the former’s directorial debut, The Alamo, and made it pretty clear that he declined because he didn’t want to spend an extended period of time not only working closely with ‘The Duke’ on camera but also being directed by him.
Wayne also approached Burt Lancaster in the late 1950s and suggested they team up to shoot a western together, which was shot down on entirely political grounds. As someone who was staunchly opposed to the Joseph McCarthy-led witchhunts that were running talented people out of Hollywood, Lancaster laughed off the suggestion that he partner with the anti-communist brigade’s most famous backer.
At the tail end of his career, ‘The Duke’ had his sights set on Elvis Presley as a potential co-star, only for ‘The King’ to reject his overtures. At the time, Elvis was trying to steer clear of acting after a string of disappointing outings, and while he was offered Glenn Campbell’s part in True Grit, Elvis’ cousin revealed that Wayne tried to get him more than once.
“In fact, he asked him a couple of times,” Billy Smith shared, although Elvis was never swayed. There weren’t many people who’d say no to Wayne when he came knocking on their door, leaving Heston, Lancaster, and Presley as the select few who turned him down flat.