The role Gary Sinise played against his will: “He wouldn’t take no for an answer”
Gary Sinise is one of those actors who should be a much bigger star than he is.
He’s got an impressive resume, sure, and most people would kill to be in Forrest Gump, Apollo 13, or The Green Mile, let alone all three, however, when you consider his co-star in all of those films, Tom Hanks, and how well he’s done for himself, you can’t help but feel like poor Gary has been left somewhat in the shade.
When Sinise does get a chance to shine as a leading man, he’s good enough to guide himself to a Golden Globe, which he did for his portrayal of Harry S Truman in a 1995 TV movie, without having to slap on a load of prosthetics. Take note, Gary Oldman. He perfectly embodied the spirit of George Milton in the film adaptation of Of Mice and Men, which he also directed; try and tell me you didn’t weep when he told John Malkovich to think about those rabbits, just try.
Another one of his outstanding performances can be found in the 1997 TV movie George Wallace, where he plays the titular character of a controversial United States governor who you may remember from the lyrics of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s ‘Sweet Home Alabama‘. His performance as the infamous Democrat may have earned him an Emmy, but Sinise had to be talked into taking the role by the project’s director.
“John Frankenheimer was adamant about me,” the star told Film Scouts. “I didn’t want to play George Wallace, but he was so persuasive and aggressive in his communication as to why I should do it and why he couldn’t deal with it if I didn’t do it. I mean, he wouldn’t take no for an answer on that one.”
Frankenheimer’s name should have been enough to convince Sinise that George Wallace was worth doing, for his back catalogue at the time included Birdman of Alcatraz, Grand Prix, and The Manchurian Candidate. The filmmaker has served as a major inspiration for Steven Spielberg, with many genuine connections to the world of American politics, including being present for the assassination of Robert F Kennedy. However, when you look at some of the things Wallace got up to in his life and career, you can see why Sinise wasn’t too keen on being associated with him.
Wallace was governor of Alabama on three separate occasions between 1963 and 1987, and his defenders will refer you to his championing of low taxes and industrial growth, but he’s mostly known for being very, very racist. The man lobbied hard against the civil rights movement, fighting to uphold the segregationist Jim Crow laws that denied Black Americans many basic amenities and human rights.
In one infamous incident, he physically blocked the doorway to a university building to stop Black students from entering. Sinise is famously conservative in his political views, but definitely not to that extent; the guy disowned Trump as a Republican, there’s no way he’s going to be in favour of someone like this.
From a professional standpoint, Sinise is probably glad that Frankenheimer bullied him into starring in George Wallace, but in terms of being able to leave the house, he might not have been so thrilled.
