The A-list actor Clint Eastwood replaced for wasting his time: “I’m not here to jerk off”
Even if an actor has never worked with Clint Eastwood before, his reputation should precede him to such an extent that they’ll know the one thing he cannot sanction is his time being wasted.
He made Matt Damon look like an idiot in front of the entire Invictus crew when he dared to ask for a second take of a shot that the director was perfectly happy with, teaching him a harsh but important lesson; when Eastwood says it’s in the can, it’s in the can, and he won’t hear anything different.
It’s not the way some performers are used to working, but having helmed dozens of features over more than half a century and won four Academy Awards for his efforts, it’s not as if the legendary actor and filmmaker is going to change the habit of a lifetime to suit the whims of a star who wants one more take.
However, pairing an Oscar-winning actor and director who specialised in westerns with an Oscar-winning actor and director who specialised in westerns had the potential to be a combustible combination, especially when Kevin Costner had no issues falling behind schedule or going over budget, which is right up there with Eastwood’s worst nightmares.
The erstwhile ‘Man with No Name’ stepped behind the camera and took second billing behind the Dances with Wolves architect in 1993’s A Perfect World, and pairing two certified A-listers who built their reputations on Americana seemed like a match made in heaven. It was, to a certain extent, apart from the glaring fact that America itself didn’t like it very much.
Costner has always been known as a perfectionist, which hasn’t done him many favours, and when he became so frustrated with another actor who couldn’t master their lines that he stormed off the set in a huff, Eastwood simply asked the star’s double to step in so he could capture the footage that he needed.
When the petulant thespian returned, he was affronted to discover that instead of waiting for him to cool his jets and come back, the director had moved on to the next setup. He wanted an explanation, and Eastwood had one: “Warner Bros pay me to shoot film. If you walk off, I’ll shoot close-ups of this double, because I’m going to shoot film.”
Costner thought he was bluffing, but he wasn’t. “You watch,” Eastwood told him. “This guy’ll play the whole movie. It may not match anything, but that’s what I’m here for. I’m not here to jerk off.” He wasn’t there to indulge the masturbatory tendencies of a performer who’d storm off in a strop at any given moment, and he was deadly serious about using the double for as many scenes if he could.
After that, Costner fell in line, knowing that Eastwood wasn’t going to put up with any of his shit. It would be interesting to hear the double’s account of the events, though, since he had to stand there while two superstars bickered over how much he was going to be used, which must have been a bit of a mindfuck.
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