Director Clint Eastwood’s 2011 movie, J. Edgar, received mixed reviews from the critics, however, the movie was also praised for various aspects. The movie narrates the life of J. Edgar Hoover, the first director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The character was played by Hollywood legend Leonardo DiCaprio.
The movie also featured some other actors like Armie Hammer, Naomi Watts, Judi Dench, and Josh Lucas. An “impromptu” scene required Hammer and DiCaprio to get in a fight and Eastwood, being the experienced director he is, decided to show them how it’s done.
Clint Eastwood taught Leonardo DiCaprio how to fight
Many will admit that director Clint Eastwood is a legend. First gaining popularity as an actor, Eastwood then switched lanes and directed some remarkable movies. His 2011 movie, J. Edgar, featured Leonardo DiCaprio and Armie Hammer as the stars of the movie.
While filming, the two were asked to film an “impromptu” fight scene. Eastwood reenacted the entire scene with a stuntman on the sets to explain the scene to the stars. In an interview with Hollywood Reporter, Armie Hammer recalled,
“Clint was there with one of his stunt-guy friends, Buddy Van Horn, and they put on an impromptu fight scene for us. There’s Buddy standing in the middle of the room, and Clint says, ‘I think it should be something like this’ – and he explodes into Clint Eastwood the fighter, and they start smacking each other around and rolling on the floor. And then Clint just gets up and says, ‘OK, something like that.’”
Eastwood has starred in countless action movies so this was just a warmup for him. The fight between Hammer and DiCaprio went on to become one of the most iconic scenes in the movie.
Leonardo DiCaprio had trouble working with Clint Eastwood
It was also revealed that DiCaprio was not happy when he was asked to follow Clint Eastwood’s “golden rules.” One of the rules is that an actor will only get one attempt at filming a scene. DiCaprio reportedly filmed a scene and felt like he could do better, however, Eastwood refused to reshoot the scene.
Matt Damon also struggled with this rule when he starred in Eastwood’s 2009 movie, Invictus. For his role in the movie, Damon spent a lot of time mastering the South African accent. In every scene, the actor managed to give his best, however, there was one scene when he felt he could do better if he tried again, but Eastwood refused.
J. Edgar received mixed reviews
J. Edgar was a biographical drama film about the life and career of J. Edgar Hoover, who was the first director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). DiCaprio, who was the star of the film, reportedly spent hours on the makeup chair preparing for his role.
It was also revealed that he got some of his salary reduced to prevent the use of CGI. The movie was highly praised for its authenticity in its scenes and makeup. It managed to earn about $84 million at the global box office.