Five classic movie characters inspired by Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood is one of those names that carries weight regardless of the context that it’s used in. As a Hollywood icon both in front of and behind the camera, it’s difficult for many modern actors not to have been inspired by him in some way.
A lot goes into his performance, which has since become synonymous with him as an actor. His stare that could stop traffic, charisma like sandpaper, and an ability to be cool without remotely trying resonates across the industry to the point that many characters have since been based on some of Eastwood’s most iconic portrayals.
He has one of the most quotable catalogues in cinema, as his legendary roles have since been taken out of context and used for writing, acting and crafting the ideas behind various new characters. A surprising number of actors have been given a character to play and decided to turn towards Eastwood’s previous roles to find out how best to approach them.
Some might seem obvious, while others are better hidden. This list will look in more detail at some of the classic movie characters who Clint Eastwood has inspired as a person and an actor.
Classic characters inspired by Clint Eastwood:
Trinity – The Matrix
While there might be a stylistic gap between some of Clint Eastwood’s classic western movies and the sci-fi world of The Matrix, Carrie-Anne Moss has confirmed that some of Eastwood’s performances inspired her character of Trinity. “I’ve never been interested in action movies,” she said, “Definitely not interested in sci-fi. So when we were on location, I decided to watch Clint Eastwood.”
When getting into character for Trinity, she leaned into the stoic nature of some of Eastwood’s performances. “I remembered how still he was. Still but full of strength,” she said, “I knew I needed to tap into that because I’m not a very still person. And I knew the brothers really wanted that quiet intensity for Trinity. It’s about her eyes, her voice, the way she moves. Or doesn’t move. And I watched Clint and thought, ‘Okay, Trinity can be still and still very powerful’.”
Wolverine – Logan
Given that Hugh Jackman had been playing Wolverine for over a decade when they started to make Logan, you would think he knew the character inside out, but what was supposed to be Wolverine’s swansong saw him go in a completely different direction. An R-rated, subtle, and subdued version of a comic book movie was made that ran parallel to some of Eastwood’s films, specifically Unforgiven.
“I don’t think we could have made this movie if I didn’t know it was going to be my last…the stakes tripled for me. There was no safety net,” said Jackman when talking about the film and the direction they wanted to go in. When addressing the fact Unforgiven inspired it, Jackman said, “It slightly subverted Clint’s history and what people knew and expected of him.”
Boba Fett – Star Wars
It turns out that Eastwood has a shadow so large in Hollywood it ends up in corners not only on this planet but in galaxies far, far away. When George Lucas was working on the early scripts for Star Wars, he was keen to make Darth Vader a bounty hunter type and looked towards some of Eastwood’s performances for inspiration.
“When I was sitting writing the early scripts for Star Wars, I wanted to develop an essentially evil character that was frightening. Darth Vader started as a kind of intergalactic bounty hunter in a space suit…” said Lucas. Of course, Vader ended up wearing all black and becoming more of a grotesque political figure; however, the bounty hunter’s appearance was given to Boba Fett. Lucas described him as “Very much like the Man with No Name from the Sergio Leone westerns.”
Miranda Priestly – The Devil Wears Prada
Meryl Streep’s character in The Devil Wears Prada is a heartless and cold leader in the fashion world. When she was getting into character for this role, she said that she turned towards some of Eastwood’s performances to fully embody the cold, hard persona that she needed for the movie.
Though she doesn’t name a specific movie, Streep did admit that her fantastic performance as Miranda Priestly was a “direct steal” from Eastwood. The western superstar inspired everything from her ice-cold stare to her cutthroat language.
Max Rockatansky – Mad Max
Finally, Mel Gibson has previously confirmed that the western movies of Clint Eastwood inspired his portrayal of Max Rockatansky. Though Mad Max isn’t a western per se, the ability to command open space is still a vital part of Rockatansky’s character, and nobody does this better than Eastwood and his thousand-mile stare.
The versatility on show with all of these characters is truly a testament to Eastwood as an actor, as he continues to inspire various characters across the cinematic world. Without his influence, some actors may have been lost with how to play characters that are now considered iconic.
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