Kevin Costner’s One Honest Move Saved a $236 Million Movie From Becoming a Box Office Flop, It Earned 3 Oscar-nominations Later
Kevin Costner is one of the most well-regarded figures in the industry, known for his exceptional acting and filmmaking. The actor-filmmaker earned two Academy Awards for his western epic 1990, Dances with Wolves, in which he not only starred but also served as the director of the movie. Costner ventured into television by portraying John Dutton on Paramount’s original series Yellowstone, for which he has been highly appreciated.
Costner appeared in 2016’s Hidden Figures, loosely based on 2016’s non-fiction book of the same name by Margot Lee Shetterly. The story revolves around three African-American mathematicians who worked at NASA during the Space Race. The movie went onto earn 3 Academy Award nominations and was highly appreciated by the critics and the audience. In a recent interview, Costner talks about his experience working on the movie.
Kevin Costner recalls being on morphine while filming Hidden Figures
In a recent interview with People, Kevin Costner reflected on his career, and during the interview, the actor revealed he worked on 2016’s Hidden Figures while on morphine. The actor who played Al Harrison in the movie explained,
I’ve never worked drunk on a set. I’ve never worked high on a set, but I was on morphine the last two weeks that I worked. I had kidney stones, and I worked 10 days under a drip. I don’t even know how about three days of it. I didn’t miss a day of work. I’ve never missed a day of work, and then when I thought I was going to be off it, a second kidney stone came, which I never had, and I was right back on it.
During the interview, Costner also remembered that when he read the script, he felt something odd about his character compared to the girls whose characters, he said, were written beautifully. The actor noted that he is not someone who likes to manipulate the script, adding that he does not let anyone manipulate his scripts, so if he ever feels something’s off, he tries to talk to the writer or the director to get some clarity.
The actor continued that, with his part, he did the same; he went to the writer and expressed that something seemed off with his character and recalled that the writer went quiet. Costner explained to the writer that it’s hard for him to explain to him but pointed out that the characters of the women in the movie are so perfectly written, but Al Harrison was not. He added that the writer told him,
That was the only character we could not get the right to, so I based it on about three different people, and I said, ‘Well, it reads like that to me.’ I said, Tell me about the other three, and he did, and I said, I see what the problem is.
Kevin Costner shared that he asked the writer if they could work on his character without taking anything from the girls, and when the writer agreed, they worked on it. The actor describes that moment as one of the greatest experiences of his life.
Kevin Costner defends casting his son in Horizon: An American Saga
Ahead of the release of Horizon: An American Saga, actor Kevin Costner defends casting his son Hayes Costner as Nathaniel Kitterdge in the movie. In an interview with Today, he said (via Page Six),
I realize there are so many young actors out there who would just kill to be in this movie. And I don’t want to take those parts away from them just because I can place my own children in them. But in a sense, it was a smaller part. I selfishly wanted him with me for the week; for two weeks, he was with me. And we would drive to the set every day, and he would whisper.
However, he admits that it was a selfish move to cast his son before adding that Hayes is beautiful and quiet. Costner said he has not shoved his children into the business, but went on to appreciate his son for his performance. The actor said his son didn’t have a lot of experience in terms of acting, but he has given a beautiful performance in the movie.
Back in April, Kevin Costner shared with ET that he named his son after the character he now plays on-screen; Hayes Ellison. He lastly added that as he watched his son grow, he could only think of working on a movie together.
Horizon: An American Saga will premiere on June 28th, 2024.
