George Clooney physically attacked this director (for good reason)

George Clooney is one of those actors that practically all of Hollywood would work with immediately. He has made a name for himself with his work in films such as “ The descendants, The Ides of March, Michael ClaytonAnd In the airHe has also directed a number of films, most notably the outstanding Good night and good luckwhich he brings to the stage for his Broadway debut. This led to Clooney interacting with, and even re-collaborating with, a wide range of actors and directors. Jon Watts‘ Crime Drama Wolves will bring him back together with Brad Pitt. But there is one director Clooney no longer wants to work withbecause an argument between him and the said director became violent. This director? None other than David O. Russellwho directed Clooney’s 1999 film “The Last Jedi” three Kings.

three Kings

Release date

27 September 1999

director

David O. Russell

Duration

114 minutes

Authors

John Ridley, David O. Russell

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What is “Three Kings” about?

three Kings begins in the final days of the Gulf War, when Major Archie Gates (Clooney) is struggling with a severe period of disillusionment. After another soldier, Troy Barlow (Mark Wahlberg), finds a map on a dead Iraqi soldier. Archie is able to convince him that it leads to a shipment of gold that was stolen from Kuwait. They decide to take it for themselves. but on the way they encounter several obstacles, including the uprisings against Saddam Hussein. Gates and Barlow, together with their comrades Elgin (Ice cubes) and Conrad Vig (Spike Jonze) try to stay one step ahead in the fight while keeping their ill-gotten gains.

three Kings marked a change for Clooney and RussellClooney wanted to talk about his role in HE in films, but his previous efforts, including the infamous Batman and Robinhad not set the world on fire. After I had written the script for three KingsClooney was blown away and lobbied to play the role. (He was lucky when Nicholas Cage ended with me signing up for Martin Scorsese‘S Bringing the dead back to life.) Russell, on the other hand, was used to working in independent films. three Kings was his biggest project to date, which led to conflicts with Clooney and other personalities.

David O. Russell was a problem even before the film began

From the jump, three Kings was plagued by problems behind the scenes. The biggest conflict was between Russell and Warner Bros., as the studio reduced both the shooting time and the budget due to concerns about the source material. “Some people at the studio thought we might be in danger while making the film – from terrorists,” Clooney said. Weekly entertainment in a 2005 interview about the creation of three Kings. Then there was the issue of the script; John Ridley originally wrote a script obliquely spoils of warwhich centers on a robbery during the Gulf War.

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When Warner Bros. contacted Russell, they showed him a list of scripts and spoils of war He liked it because of the heist aspect, which led to conflicts with Ridley. Ridley eventually got a “story by” credit on the final version of three Kingsbut he blocked Russell’s efforts to publish the script in book form. “I keep getting calls from the producers and the studio asking me to please allow him to do the thing. But I was treated completely disrespectfully throughout the whole process and now they’re asking me for a favor? The answer is no.” Russell has also been linked to abusive incidents throughout his career. This includes yelling at Lily Tomlin on the set of I love Huckabees and set Christopher Nolan to take him in a headlock and demand that Jude Law Cancellation of filming The prestige so he could work with Russell.

George Clooney hated how David O. Russell treated people during production

This eventually led to the infamous brawl between Clooney and Russell. During filming, an extra suffered an epileptic seizure and Clooney rushed to his aid and later reprimanded Russell for his indifference. Then, in a scene with Ice cubesWhen he saw the character Elgin in “The Movie,” an extra was having trouble throwing him to the ground, so Russell stepped in. Clooney felt he was too rough with the extra. which led to the two fighting and Clooney putting Russell in a headlock. Manufacturer Charles Roven remembered the fight in detail in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter:

Now we’re shooting the climax of the film. Helicopters, explosions, gunshots. It’s chaos, madness. And George sees David talking to the assistant director of the extras, and it looks like he’s yelling at him. But he’s yelling to be heard. And George comes running and says, “I told you, you asshole, if you’re going to bully anyone, it’s me.” And David says, “Why don’t you just think about your lines?” And boom! They’re grabbing each other and wrestling. And so I pulled George away. That was it.

Both Clooney and Russell gave their own contradictory version of the event; Clooney told EW that he saw Russell “going crazy” on the extra and decided to intervene. “So I grabbed him by the throat. And I screamed at him and he screamed at me and we were doing it.” Russell reacted much more violently in 2004: “I never physically attacked him. When I met him, I would say, ‘Shut up, you lying bitch.'”

“Three Kings” turned out to be a convincing anti-war satire

Despite the chaotic production, three Kings turned out to be a truly unique war film. This was partly due to the way the film was shot, as Russell decided to use handheld cameras throughout the shoot. The end result makes the audience feel like they are part of the film, which leads to some truly disturbing scenes. Case in point: When soldier Conrad Vig (Spike Jonze) is fatally wounded, the perspective shifts to in his bodywhich shows a bullet piercing several organs. The same thing happens when a bullet pierces Barlow’s chest and causes air to crush one of his lungs. None of this is pretty, but it is a convincing picture of the physical strain that war demands of its fighters. Russell also leaves room for some truly absurd moments, including a moment in the third act where Elgin finds a Nerf football stuffed with C4… and uses it to take out a helicopter.

The real highlight of the film, however, is Clooney’s portrayal of Gates. This is a man who was completely demoralized by the war; he has sunk into an abyss of debauchery and sees robbery as a way to find meaning in life. When he asks the other soldiers what the most important thing in life is, the answers range from respect (Barlow) to “God’s will” (Elgin). Gates replies, “Necessity,” and when pressed to elaborate, he continues, “That is, people do what is most necessary for them at any given moment.” It’s a powerful line, made all the more powerful by Clooney’s intense gaze and the way he delivers his lines with fierce, unwavering clarity. Clooney can also deliver some snappy one-linersincluding a little about a map of Saddam Hussein’s bunkers weren’t meant to be as funny as they are. This ability to alternate between grit and melancholy was a testament to Clooney’s talent, and it’s a balance he’ll continue to employ in future roles.

George Clooney and David O. Russell experience highs and lows after “Three Kings”

three Kings represented a huge career boost for Clooney and Russellas they would continue to land high-profile projects and work with the crème de la crème of Hollywood. Clooney would team up with Pitt and Steven Soderbergh for Oceans Eleven, one year after Three Kings. Russell directed three more successful films, including The fighter, silver linings PlaybookAnd American hustle and bustletogether with greats like Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Amy Adams And Christian BaleBut in recent years both men have experienced a decline in response to their projects. Clooney’s last two directorial efforts, The Tender Bar And The boys in the boatreceived a mixed reception upon its debut, while Russell’s most recent film, Amsterdamwas a star-studded box office flop. It is a miracle that the couple managed to three Kingsalthough it’s probably best if they never work together again.

three Kings can be rented in the USA on Prime Video

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