“He screamed at me”: The brutal direction Jeff Goldblum received in his first ever scene
Nobody screams at Jeff Goldblum. Or at least, it’s pretty much impossible to believe that anyone would be physically — let alone emotionally — capable of doing it. The man oozes good vibes. If he started a cult tomorrow, he’d have legions of people signing up to join, no questions asked.
Falling somewhere between Tom Hanks and the Dude from The Big Lebowski, Goldblum’s brand of celebrity is singular, oddly soothing, and delightfully carefree. He’s starred in some of the biggest box office successes of the 1990s, including Jurassic Park and Independence Day, and joined the rotating cast of whimsical Wes Anderson collaborators, but his greatest performances are arguably when he’s simply just being himself. Whether he’s mugging for the camera on the red carpet, doling out wisdom on a late-night talk show, or explaining his childhood obsession with mime, he commands adoration.
And yet, as shocking as it may be, there was at least one instance in which a person did not love Jeff Goldblum, and that person was the director Michael Winner. Known for the string of Charles Bronson thrillers he made in the 1970s and ‘80s, beginning with 1974’s Death Wish, the English director was controversial for his outspoken views on British cinema and, following his death, for allegations that he pushed his stunt performers to dangerous lengths and harassed multiple female actors who worked with him.
If anyone was going to lose his temper at Jeff Goldblum, it was Winner, and sure enough, that’s exactly what happened. As Goldblum remembered it in a 2023 interview, the incident occurred on the set of Death Wish, which happened to be the first time the actor ever set foot on a movie set. “In my very first scene,” Goldblum recalled, “[He] screamed at me in front of everybody – before we rolled, while we were rehearsing: ‘Goldblum! Start acting!’ It was not the worst direction I ever got. By the time we did my part in The Sentinel, he was lovely to me. I’d wish I’d had Wikipedia, because I would’ve asked Michael Winner about having worked with Brando a couple of years before that.”
The magnanimity of this recollection is hardly surprising given Goldblum’s laid-back reputation. Instead of calling the director out for his domineering behaviour, Goldblum was merely regretful that he never asked Winner about what it was like to work with one of his idols. Winner’s behaviour didn’t deter the young actor when the incident took place, either. Goldblum’s role in Death Wish is fleeting but indelible. He plays a gang member with a chilling grin and distinctly ’70s outfit who rapes and assaults the daughter and wife of Bronson’s character, setting the plot in motion.
It’s no wonder that, by the time he was enlisted to appear in Winner’s film The Sentinel, several years later, the director had nothing but respect and admiration for the young actor. He was worth rehiring if he could pull off such a creepy performance on his first-ever movie under the ire of a formidable director.
The question that lingers from Goldblum’s anecdote is, if Winner’s brusqueness on the set of Death Wish was not the worst direction he’s ever received, what was? Goldblum fans would like to know.
