10 Times Massive Egos Ruined Productions

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This is why you should leave your ego at the door! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’ll be discussing ten instances where actions behind the scenes of a film resulted in repercussions for the finished product, or the careers of those involved.
Transcript
00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we'll be discussing 10 instances where actions behind
00:13the scenes of a film resulted in repercussions for the finished product, or the careers of
00:17those involved.
00:24Dwayne Johnson, Black Adam
00:25Adaptations of famous properties don't necessarily need to adhere strictly to the source material
00:29to be successful. That said, comic book fans are generally protective of the stories and
00:34characters they love, and want them to be represented with respect. Dwayne Johnson's
00:47actions behind the scenes of 2022's Black Adam seem to have distanced the title character
00:51superhero, with which he is most identified in the comics, Shazam. Reportedly, Johnson
01:01was more interested in Black Adam having a future on-screen collaboration with Superman
01:05rather than the one-time Captain Marvel. Of course, none of this really matters in the
01:22end, since Black Adam disappointed both critics and audiences upon release, while its profit
01:27margin was comparatively slim thanks to the hefty production budget.
01:30Lindsay Lohan, The Canyons
01:35Many of Lindsay Lohan's fans were rooting for the actress as she attempted a slow return
01:38to the silver screen after a much-publicized struggle with substance use disorder. Unfortunately,
01:43films such as 2013's The Canyons didn't do much to raise Lohan's public profile,
01:47at least not in the way she probably intended. Instead, stories arose about how Lohan would
01:54either show up unfit to work or not bother to show up at all. The actress was also allegedly
02:06combative on set, and demanded others, including director Paul Schrader, disrobe when it came
02:11time to shoot a sex scene from the script. Finally, Lohan publicly distanced herself
02:17from the erotic thriller after it was finished, essentially putting the kibosh upon any sort
02:20of promotion.
02:26Joaquin Tudor Jones, aka Ninja, Chappie
02:30Man, director Neil Blomkamp just can't seem to catch a break, can he? The director's
02:34filmography includes many efforts that were hampered due to a variety of missteps, mistakes,
02:39and misfires.
02:45Chappie was one such entry, a film from 2015 that featured within its cast one Joaquin
02:49Tudor Jones, also known as Ninja from the group Deontwort. Ninja was allegedly hostile
02:54to a number of cast and crew during the production of Chappie, and it's unclear from sourcers
02:58whether this hostility was sincere or came from a place of method acting. Whatever the
03:03case, Chappie did double its budget of $49 million, but this was still seen as a failure,
03:08and plans for future sequels were scrapped.
03:24Charlie Sheen, Two and a Half Men
03:26The big screen isn't the only place where egos can run rampant, and seemingly irreparable
03:30riffs can emerge at a moment's notice. Two and a Half Men was a fan-favorite sitcom during
03:38its early years, serving as something of a triumph for movie star Charlie Sheen. However,
03:50this small-screen success was dampened by Sheen's struggles with substance use disorder,
03:54resulting in repeated clashes with co-stars as well as with creator Chuck Lorre. Sheen's
03:58character was eventually written off the show when the actor was dismissed from Two and
04:01a Half Men, but this wasn't the end of the story. Instead, Lorre decided to make a film
04:08the last laugh by killing off Sheen's character in a manner that can only be described as
04:12broad.
04:19Alejandro Chodorovsky, Dune
04:21The fascinating 2013 documentary, Chodorovsky's Dune, tells the tale of the maverick and often
04:26controversial director's unmade Dune adaptation from the 1970s. Chodorovsky, who was known
04:41for his transgressive cinematic tendencies, possessed a sprawling, nigh-unfilmable vision
04:46for Dune. This adaptation of the Frank Herbert series of novels possessed ideas that were
04:51incredible, magnificent, and truly awe-inspiring. They were also, however, unfilmable for any
04:56movie studio that didn't have a blank checkbook policy. The auteur refused to compromise
05:11on this vision, which frightened off investors. The level of expense and manpower required
05:23for production, alongside Chodorovsky's desire for the film to run at least 10 hours,
05:29was simply unattainable, and Chodorovsky's Dune never came to fruition.
05:32Edward Norton and Tony Kaye, American History X
05:39Edward Norton is an extremely talented actor, and American History X was a noteworthy achievement
05:43for director Tony Kaye. However, the production of this film was fraught with turmoil, including
05:48repeated clashes between the director and his leading man. Norton's reputation for
05:58being creatively hands-on has often resulted in tensions behind the scenes. This was seen
06:02in 2008's The Incredible Hulk, with the role of Bruce Banner being recast after Norton's
06:06involvement. Norton's script doctoring and edits for American History X resulted in fiery
06:21confrontations between the actor, Kaye, and New Line Cinema. The final product underperformed
06:29at the box office, and Kaye's career as a director stalled in the aftermath of his disowning
06:33of the film.
06:34Michael Cimino – Heaven's Gate
06:36Writer-director Michael Cimino was on a roll going into 1980's Heaven's Gate. The man
06:40had written some successful screenplays, and helmed two well-received feature films, Thunderbolt
06:44and Lightfoot, and The Deer Hunter. It was this latter film that Cimino's meticulous
06:48style as a filmmaker was codified, and the film won five Academy Awards, including Best
06:53Picture and Best Director. But it would be with Heaven's Gate that the level of obsession
06:58would go too far, effectively ruining his career. The film was critically panned and
07:12a huge commercial bomb that steered its studio, United Artists, into bankruptcy. Today, Heaven's
07:22Gate has received a Criterion release on home video, and is regarded by some as an underseen
07:26and unfairly maligned cult classic, but Cimino didn't make another feature for five years.
07:33Wesley Snipes – Blade Trinity
07:40The Blade character is one that's still awaiting a reboot from Marvel. After Wesley Snipes
07:44first embodied the role back in the 1990's, Blade Trinity did no service to the character's
07:48legacy, however, and was notably fraught with behind-the-scenes drama. It was the first
08:05film in the franchise to be helmed by its screenwriter, David S. Goyer, and this decision
08:09immediately put the director at odds with his lead. Snipes reportedly made production
08:12hell for both his director and co-stars. The actor allegedly communicated only in writing
08:24to Goyer, and signed all of his missives as Blade. Snipes, for his part, maintained that
08:29his executive producer privileges offered him creative control that wasn't recognized on the
08:34studio. Val Kilmer and Marlon Brando – The Island of Dr. Moreau
08:48It's one of the most infamously troubled film sets of all time,
08:52so much so that it was made the subject of its own documentary.
08:55This 2014 film details how a 1996 adaptation of The Island of Dr. Moreau brought in two actors
09:09infamous for their bad behavior, the young hotshot Val Kilmer and the OG enfant terrible
09:14Marlon Brando. The film's screenwriter and original director, Richard Stanley,
09:21was fired midway through production, yet snuck back on set in costume.
09:31Kilmer was going through a divorce, and was allegedly argumentative throughout production.
09:35Meanwhile, Brando demanded to be fed all his lines via earpiece, and co-star Fairuza Balk
09:40actually attempted to physically escape the film, but was dragged – proverbially – back to the
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10:11Joan Crawford and Betty Davis – Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?
10:17Theirs was a professional and personal rivalry so infamous that it was developed into a television
10:22series. Betty Davis and Joan Crawford are towering legends of old-school Hollywood,
10:30and their distaste for one another actually worked in the financial favor of Whatever
10:34Happened to Baby Jane in 1962. This psychological thriller would turn out to be a defining film for
10:54both women, but not without a cost. There were reports that Davis only signed on to the film
10:59once she was assured that her ratio of close-ups wouldn't be affected by any suspected behind-the-
11:03scenes romance between Crawford and the director. Elsewhere, it was alleged that the two stars
11:21caused injury to each other during certain scenes. Do stories of behind-the-scenes drama
11:25impact your enjoyment of any of these films? Let us know in the comments.
11:33Right away, the whole thing went south, Jack.
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