The one thing Harrison Ford has always hated about Hollywood: “That drives me crazy”
Once upon a time, an actor was required to do nothing more than precisely that: act. Of course, as the industry has continued to evolve, new bells and whistles are constantly being added, and one aspect of Hollywood has been a source of frustration for Harrison Ford for decades.
It used to be the case, admittedly, a long time ago, that actors were hired to play a role, they’d play that role, and then that would be the end. However, as cinema exploded into life and became one of the planet’s favourite forms of entertainment, the biggest stars in the business didn’t have a say in their lives being played out in the public eye.
If things had gone to plan, Ford may not have even become an icon. George Lucas didn’t want to cast him in either Star Wars or Raiders of the Lost Ark for the same reason: he was trying to avoid using actors who’d been in his previous films. When extensive searches yielded no suitable Han Solo, and Tom Selleck was forced to drop out as Indiana Jones, Ford got to play two of the most famous characters of all time.
Even though he ranks among modern cinema’s most successful, highest-paid, bankable, and famous names, Ford has never seen himself as anything else than a working actor. While that’s technically true, there’s a distinct difference between a thespian and a movie star, and it’s been half a century since he was the former.
These days, Ford’s abject misery towards almost everything has almost become endearing. He bristles at the mere mention of Star Wars, refuses to acknowledge his reputation as an indelible figure in the last 50 years of mainstream American cinema, and would rather not promote his films. None of this is new, though, with the actor sounding indignant at being labelled as the biggest box office star of the 1980s in an interview held in 1990.
“That’s a statistical construct that has very little meaning,” he suggested, overlooking that he could bring audiences to their local theatre based largely on the value he’d accumulated as a draw. By that time, movie stars were obligated to travel the world, hit the press circuit, conduct countless conversations across a number of mediums, and dedicate an immense amount of time to let everybody know they had a new movie coming up.
It was part of his contracts, but Ford couldn’t wait to retreat from the spotlight. “I make myself available when I have a picture to sell,” he bristled. “I’m aware of how much value it is to bring this film to the attention of the public. Certainly, the anticipation of this process is the one thing that drives me crazy.”
Unfortunately, it’s part of the gig. Ford has dreaded promotion for almost the entire time he’s been a household name, which he kind of brought on himself by becoming such a big deal in the first place.
