The late Gene Hackman probably refused 10 times more jobs he has taken. He was such an acclaimed actor, and so flexible with regard to tone and gender, he had to be very demanding for several decades in a row. He was one of those artists who were both excellent in his job And A massive box office draw, therefore naturally, everyone wanted to collaborate with him. Hackman was also notoriously acing on the sets, however, often becoming rabid when he worked with actors that he felt less than professionals. The stories that director Barry Sonnenfeld told Hackman on the set of “Get Shorty” alone are quite colorful.
It seems that one of the many high -level roles that Hackman has rejected was William Somerset, the detective of Drained Homicide of Hope at the center of the serial killer of David Fincher by David Fincher “Seven”. The role finally went to Morgan Freeman, but it took production for a while to settle. Those who have seen “Seven” will remember that the film is so implacably dark and desperate that it appears almost as a parody. His story follows Somerset and his partner, Mills (Brad Pitt), while investigating a serial killer who murdered victims to match the seven fatal sins. As we reach the end of the film, the killer (Kevin Spacey) even managed to finish his project twisted in an unexpected way. Many people are dead and no one is happy.
But despite what you might think, it was not the despair that removed Hackman. In fact, his lack of interest had nothing to do with his perception of the quality of the project.
Hackman dropped seven because he didn’t want to shoot the night
As Fincher had signed to lead “Seven”, the role of Somerset had already been refused by another acting legend in the form of Al Pacino. Therefore, Fincher was responsible for asking Hackman to get on board and replace him. The filmmaker agreed with this idea (since Hackman was, well, one of the best to do so), but their meeting did not go well. As Fincher recalled it in an interview in 2024 with the Los Angeles Times:
“They really wanted Al Pacino, and Al Pacino said no. I got involved after that. And I think the first person I spoke with was Gene Hackman. I went to meet Gene Hackman, with whom I was entirely intimidated because, for my money, he could be the biggest film actor of all time – just the kind of effort,” Tire. ‘I think we had a 40 -minute conversation. He said, “Count me. So that’s it. “”
Please note, night filming is far from unusual with regard to cinematographic and televised productions, so it would be perfectly understandable that a foreigner of the industry said this quote from Fincher and thought that Hackman was simply exaggerated or unusual. If you allow me, however, I would like to offer a defense in honor of man.
To defend Hackman’s decision
It should be noted that even if the night shots are actually quite common in the industry, Hackman was not just capricious or unreasonable. The night shots are exhausting and completely throws people’s sleep schedules. They also require, at least for external shots, many complex lighting configurations, which have a multitude of interesting problems. Hackman had made enough films in 1995 to find out that he hated night filming. He was also quite famous at that time to be demanding with his roles. If he didn’t want to shoot the night, then, damn he was not going. Hackman was not spoiled. It was simply selectively appropriately.
In addition, he did not hurt work. In 1995, he made “Get Shorty”, “The Quick and the Dead” by Sam Raimi (Western with a spectacular action), and the underwater thriller of Tony Scott “Crimson Tide”, so “Seven” was not a rare opportunity. It was only a potential concert of many, but which would have forced Hackman to stand up to dawn. I would also have refused it.
