The director Gene Hackman hated working with: “Will you just shut the fuck up and go over there?”
The work of Gene Hackman has shaped the landscape of Hollywood today, with stellar performances in groundbreaking films such as Bonnie and Clyde, The French Connection and The Conversation. With an aptitude for versatility and an unshakably commanding screen presence, the actor became known for his involvement within the New Hollywood movement by working with directors such as Francis Ford Coppola, William Friedkin and Arthur Penn. However, in his final years of working, he made some interesting creative choices after collaborating with Wes Anderson on The Royal Tenenbaums and eventually his final ever film, the surprising and slightly baffling Welcome to Mooseport. There is still some speculation about whether this was the project to make him quit acting altogether, but his co-star Maura Tierney has unintentionally shed some light on this.
Tierney has had wonderful supporting roles in films like Beautiful Boy, The Iron Claw, Insomnia and Twisters, working with some of the greatest directors across all genres of cinema. Whether it be gritty independent dramas or high-budget action thrillers, Tierney has seen it all.
But perhaps the most surprising venture was that of working with Gene Hackman on his last film, the story of a retired US president who returns to his hometown of Mooseport and decides to run for mayor against a local candidate. It was famously not received well, and remains as one of the lowest rated film in his filmography. But perhaps, there is another layer to its failure that we weren’t aware of.
The film was directed by Donal Petrie, who is known for his wonderful contributions to the rom-com genre with seminal classics such as How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days and Miss Congeniality. Welcome to Mooseport was a strange detour from his usual romantic territory, and when discussing the production process, Tierney revealed that Hackman was perhaps not the greatest fan of his working style.
Tierney expanded on the relationship between Hackman and Petrie, saying, “He [Hackman] was nice to me. He didn’t like the director. But I don’t think he likes directors. I think that’s his schtick. I mean, he did, I believe, tell the director at some point to, uh… [Starts to laugh.] “Will you just shut the fuck up and go over there and say ‘action’ or whatever it is you do?”
Hackman is known for his professionalism and dedication to his craft, and so his snapping at Tierney feels somewhat out of character. But given the nature of the project and the director’s previous experience, it is understandable why he might have struggled with the production. The film is far from the greatness of his earlier work, and who knows why he agreed to star in the political comedy, but I doubt it was for bragging rights over working with the mind behind Mystic Pizza and Richie Rich.
Every actor will inevitably find themselves in a role that doesn’t entirely fit with the rest of their work, but it is an endearing reminded that movie stars are also just regular people who sometimes get stuck in a job that merely pays the bills.
