The only role Harry Dean Stanton regretted turning down: “That was a big mistake”
Actors who stick to supporting roles for most of their careers are often unsung heroes compared to their larger-than-life leading co-stars who feature on posters and go on talk shows. However, for any film fan who knows their stuff, seeing names like that of Harry Dean Stanton on the casting list has always been a sign that it’s impossible for that movie to be a complete waste of time, at least not in the parts where Stanton demonstrated his artistry.
Over the course of his storied career, Stanton had the opportunity to work with some of the biggest names in the industry. Ranging from Ridley Scott’s Alien to Martin Scorsese’s The Last Temptation of Christ, the American actor’s body of work is stacked with one legendary entry after another, even if he didn’t always get the attention he deserved for the contributions he made to these stone-cold classics.
However, even considering that he really enjoyed the supporting roles and the character acting he did throughout his tenure in Hollywood, it’s in the lead roles that Stanton really got the opportunity to breathe and demonstrate his acting chops. The greatest example of that is Wim Wenders’ Paris, Texas, featuring him as a man who has come unstuck from society, rummaging around in the landscape of his mind to pick up the pieces of his fragmented family.
In one of the final on-screen appearances of Stanton’s life, Lucky, he proved once again that he had what it took to captivate audiences by being at the centre of a story. In the context of the career Stanton enjoyed, it’s hard to imagine that he had any regrets, but in one interview, the actor once revealed that he did feel that he had made the wrong choice when it came to turning down one particular project.
That movie was none other than David Lynch’s 1986 psychosexual thriller Blue Velvet, starring young Kyle MacLachlan and Laura Dern opposite Isabella Rossellini. Stanton worked with Lynch on multiple movies, including Wild at Heart and Inland Empire, but saying no to the role of Frank Booth in Blue Velvet stuck in his mind as a sore spot.
When asked about the role, Stanton revealed that he was apprehensive about the character because of the psychologically sinister edge to the role. He explained: “I think I was afraid of it. That was a big mistake, though. I wish I’d done it and just seized the bull by the horns. The older I got, the more I didn’t want to go to those dark places, which is a mistake for an actor.”
The role ended up going to none other than Dennis Hopper, who turned out to be the perfect casting choice. Perfectly embodying the chaotic energy of a gas-huffing psychopath whose next move was always unpredictable, the character of Frank Booth is a stand-out performance from a career that was already full of so many memorable outings. As Hopper conclusively declared to Lynch himself: “You know, David, you haven’t made a mistake casting me because I am Frank Booth.”
