Celebrity feuds are nothing new, but when the friction involves actors and directors, the result is often a swift and fairly public firing. In some cases, it has made a huge impact on the actor’s career.
The working relationship between directors and actors can last for decades, and result in ongoing projects and even a career revival. Or...they can fizzle out pretty quickly, leaving both sides angry and one of them unemployed.
“Creative differences” is the harmless-sounding phrase that studios often use when announcing casting changes. Here’s a look at what went on behind the scenes when these actors were fired.
9 Julianne Moore's Idea Of Realism Got Her Fired From Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Melissa McCarthy ended up with an Oscar nod for the role of writer Lee Israel – a role that was first given to Julianne Moore. In a TV appearance quoted in Marie Claire, Moore explained. “I didn’t leave that movie, I was fired. Nicole fired me.” In interviews, other cast members noted that Moore wanted to look more like the real-life Israel, and wear a fat suit and fake nose, but director Nicole Holofcener nixed the idea – and Moore with it.
8 Megan Fox Made Up With Michael Bay After Their Feud
Megan Fox gave the Transformers franchise its sex appeal as Mikaela Banes – at least, in the first two movies. However, after Fox told Wonderland magazine, “He’s like Napoleon and he wants to create this insane, infamous mad man reputation. He wants to be like Hitler on his sets, and he is. So he’s a nightmare to work for...” Bay – and even executive producer Steven Spielberg – made sure she wasn’t back for the third flick. But, Megan and Bay made up to make the TMNT reboot movies together.
7 Judy Garland Was Fired For Not Coming Out Of Her Dressing Room
Judy Garland is a Hollywood icon, but even her biggest fans will admit that her behavior during her last years was problematic. In interviews, Judy herself admitted that she’d been fired from the movie Valley Of The Dolls (1967), but didn’t get into detail, and there was no official word from the studio.
Rumors from the set, though, paint a picture of a difficult star who demanded constant rewrites of the script, feuded with the director, and at one point, refused to come out of her dressing room.
6 Marcus Chong Took His The Matrix Fight To Court – And YouTube
Between The Matrix and The Matrix Reloaded, character Tank was mysteriously killed off. Actor Marcus Chong says it was a conspiracy, and took his fight with Matrix directors The Wachowskis, along with producer Joel Silver and even Keanu Reeves to court, claiming he'd been financially shafted by his deal with them, and then fired. He made a YouTube video making his allegations, and has also allegedly made threatening phone calls to Warner Bros. Needless to say, it has not done his career any good.
5 Rip Torn Was Fired From Easy Rider After A Knife Fight
Screenwriter Terry Southern had Rip Torn in mind for the role of George Hanson in the iconic movie Easy Rider. But, when Torn went to dinner with stars Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper, a disagreement broke out. Hopper pulled a knife, and Rip Torn disarmed him. Hopper, who also directed, fired Rip Torn on the spot. He would later claim that it was Torn who'd pulled the knife, and in 1994, Torn sued him for defamation. He won a $1 million settlement in damages against Hopper.
4 Eric Stoltz Method Acted His Way Out Of Back To The Future
Eric Stoltz is known for his strict adherence to the method acting rule – which, among other things, means staying in character even during breaks in shooting. When he was cast as Marty McFly in Back to the Future, though, it’s safe to say that director Robert Zemeckis was looking for a lighter touch.
Stoltz’s intense take on the character made him extra hostile towards actor Tom Wilson, who played the bully Biff Tannen. One shoving match resulted in bruised on Wilson’s chest, and Zemeckis made the decision to replace him with Michael J. Fox.
3 Chadwick Boseman Said He Was Fired From A Soap For Complaining About Racist Stereotypes
In 2018, Chadwick Boseman made a commencement speech at Howard University, his alma mater, and mentioned a story about getting fired from a soap opera (All My Children, as he later confirmed) after he questioned the racial stereotypes involved with his character, Reggie Porter Montgomery. Reggie was a gang member with no father and a mother who didn’t look after her kids. He says he was fired the day after he objected – and ironically, was replaced by Michael B. Jordan, who played his Black Panther nemesis Killmonger.
2 Richard Gere Was Canned After Clashing With Sylvester Stallone On The Set Of The Lords Of Flatbush
It was director Martin Davidson's first film, and Sylvester Stallone's second starring role, a couple of years before he hit the big time with Rocky. It would also have been Richard Gere's first Hollywood starring role, but he blew that opportunity by getting into conflicts with Sylvester Stallone. In interviews, Stallone said Gere’s method acting stunts made him “impossible to deal with”. He also described shoving him out of the car after dripping mustard on his pants. Davidson made the choice to fire Gere and keep Stallone.
1 Joel Schumacher Made Sure Val Kilmer Only Played Batman Once
Joel Schumacher took over the Batman franchise after Tim Burton left, casting Val Kilmer in the title role. In 1995, Kilmer’s career was on a high swing, but that would soon change. There were reports of physical altercations between Kilmer and crew members, and worse. Schumacher is quoted in Ranker. "He was badly behaved, he was rude and inappropriate. I was forced to tell him that this would not be tolerated for one more second." The director made sure to recast the role for the next Batman outing.