“I can’t think of one good thing to say about it”: Clint Eastwood Saved His Own Career by Dismissing Manager’s Review of an Extremely Violent Script That Became His Best Ever Movie
- Clint Eastwood initially shelved 'Unforgiven' after his manager’s harsh critique.
- Eastwood found the script again, saw its potential, and chose to direct it.
- The film was a smash hit, snagging Oscars and giving Eastwood’s career a big boost.
There are Revisionist Westerns, and then there’s Unforgiven. In 1992, Clint Eastwood brought us this dark and gritty film, proving that even cowboys can have a bad day — showing that the heroic image of cowboys can be just as flawed and troubled as anyone else.
The Western genre (once a blockbuster favorite) was experiencing drought in the early 1990s. Audiences were getting bored with the same old Western clichés, and ticket sales were falling. Yet, even in this movie slump, there was a hidden gem waiting to be found.
Clint Eastwood’s Unforgiven Script was First Rejected by his Manager
Before David Webb Peoples became famous for movies like Blade Runner and 12 Monkeys, he was just a writer trying to get his big break. Back in 1976, a talented writer finished his script for Unforgiven, which had some pretty strange titles like ‘The William Munny Killings’ and ‘The Cut-Whore Killings.’
Many people ignored it because of those weird names, but then Francis Ford Coppola came along and noticed it. Coppola liked the screenplay and bought the rights to it. However, he couldn’t make the movie happen because his rights to the script ended in 1985.
Then came Clint Eastwood, the seasoned actor and director looking for a new project to boost his career. When his longtime associate, Sonia Chernus, read the script, her reaction was scathing. In a memo to Eastwood, she said of the screenplay (Via Flickering Myth):
We would have been far better off not to have accepted trash like this piece of inferior work. I can’t think of one good thing to say about it. Except maybe, get rid of it fast.
Trusting her instincts, Eastwood shelved the script.
Clint Eastwood’s Fortuitous Discovery of Unforgiven‘s Script
Fate, however, had other plans. While Clint Eastwood was busy with another project, he accidentally came across Peoples’ script again. This time, he looked past the gory bits and saw a story with some really interesting characters. The script really struck a chord with him, and he suddenly knew he was the ideal person to make it come alive.
The actor liked it so much that he wanted to both star in it and direct it. So, he decided to hold off on making the film until he was old enough to play the main character in the dark story. The Hollywood star’s choice to ignore his manager and make Unforgiven turned out to be brilliant.
The movie was a huge hit with both critics and audiences, and Eastwood snagged Oscars for Best Director and Best Picture. It showed that Westerns weren’t dead yet, proving there was still a lot of kick left in the ol’ horse! Unforgiven didn’t just save Eastwood’s career; it also made him a standout director with a sharp vision.
As of 19th August 2024, Unforgiven is on Amazon Prime Video!
