The director Robert Redford refused to work with: “It needed a master hand to make it work”
Robert Redford has made some risky career moves over the years, becoming one of the founding fathers of independent cinema through Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, kicking off the New Hollywood movement and pathing the way for directors like Martin Scorsese and Peter Bogdanovich to spread their wings. After this, he worked across all corners of the medium, both behind and in front of the camera, directing heart-wrenching classics like Ordinary People and starring in globally acclaimed films like The Sting, The Way We Were and Out of Africa.
However, while the actor found success through all of these projects, he wasn’t always convinced by the creative viability of these stories from the start, expressing doubt over one of his most influential pictures.
The Sting was directed by George Roy Hill in 1973, following a novice con man who teams up with a master of the trade to avenge the murder of a mutual friend by pulling off the ultimate con. The film stars Robert Redford and Paul Newman, who would go on to become two of the most iconic Hollywood frontmen of all time—which you might think would be enough to guarantee the project’s success. However, the stellar casting did not put Redford’s mind at ease, as another director was initially attached to the project—one the actor didn’t believe was up for the job.
David S Ward wrote the script for The Sting, coming up with the idea as a film student and presenting it to aspiring producers Tony Bill and Michael Phillips. When the production eventually began, the team kept trying to convince Redford to sign onto the project. While he loved the script as much as everyone else did, Ward was initially set to direct the film, something that Redford believed would be detrimental due to the fact that he was relatively inexperienced as a director.
The actor remained adamant that the film “needed a master hand to make it work”, and so when George Roy Hill was approached about joining the project, Redford immediately knew he was the perfect man for the job. The pair had already established a strong creative rapport after working together on Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and so this decision ultimately influenced his decision to join the cast and play the now-infamous role of Johnny Hooker.
The film broke a staggering number of records after its release, with producer Julia Phillips becoming the first woman to win an Oscar for producing, as well as also being awarded ‘Best Picture’, ‘Best Director’ and ‘Best Original Screenplay’. It was one of the biggest sweeps in Oscar history, as well as marking the first ceremony in which a streaker broke into the auditorium and ran naked across the stage. It was a night to remember for many reasons.
Redford’s gut instinct about Ward not being suitable for the project further demonstrates his deep understanding of the medium and the intricacies of the business, something that set him in great stead when creating films of his own and later founding the Sundance Film Festival, using his knowledge to advocate for other filmmakers.
