Harrison Ford is willing to open up about his on-set conflict with Brad Pitt. The two actors produced The Devil's Own, the final film of Alan J. Pakula (To Kill A Mockingbird). The project is a typical action movie revolving around the activities of an Irish Republican Army (IRA) fighter and his desperate attempt to gather missiles that can help him in the guerilla fight against the British. While Ford repeatedly insists that he still respects Pitt immensely, he admits that the on-set turmoil throughout the production of The Devil's Own created a tense atmosphere.
In an interview with Esquire, Ford explained that they were constantly arguing over the director, the direction, and the film's script. The two eventually decided on Pakula to serve as their director, yet they still struggled with the script and the overall production. When the film finally hit theaters, it was a relative success with a $140 million box office take on a $90 million budget. Check out his quote below:
"Brad [Pitt] developed the script. Then they offered me the part. I saved my comments about the character and the construction of the thing—I admired Brad. First of all, I admire Brad. I think he’s a wonderful actor. He’s a really decent guy. But we couldn’t agree on a director until we came to Alan Pakula, who I had worked with before but Brad had not. Brad had this complicated character, and I wanted a complication on my side so that it wasn’t just a good-and-evil battle. And that’s when I came up with the bad-shooting thing. I worked with a writer—but then all the sudden we’re shooting and we didn’t have a script that Brad and I agreed on. Each of us had different ideas about it. I understand why he wanted to stay with his point of view, and I wanted to stay with my point of view—or I was imposing my point of view, and it’s fair to say that that’s what Brad felt. It was complicated. I like the movie very much. Very much."
What Led To The BTS Issues On The Devil's Own
Brad Pitt and Harrison Ford aren't the only actors to have differences boil over on set. The most infamous feud of recent years has been between The Rock and Vin Diesel, leading to the two avoiding each other entirely on the set of Fast & Furious before putting their conflict aside for The Rock to return for Fast X and Fast 11. There have been so many Hollywood fights over the years that they have even been downright parodied. For instance, Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman's fake feud has its own storyline and cult following.
During The Devil's Own pre-production, Gene Hackman and Sean Connery were the top choices for the role of Tom O'Meara, but Ford was ultimately cast. This resulted in major changes to the script to elevate the character's magnitude, which meant that Pitt and Ford shared equal weight as action heroes in the film. Pitt almost quit the film due to problems with the script, but uncredited screenwriter Robert Mark Kamen resolved the writing issue by meeting Pitt and Ford and settling their character's stories. Kamen also clarified the tension wasn't between the actors but with how they tried to approach their respective characters.
The Devil's Own is not well remembered today, but it is a reminder that Hollywood feuds do not necessarily need to be the end of respect between two actors. Despite admitting his conflict with Pitt, Ford still admits his undying admiration for the actor and his talents. Over 25 years after the release of The Devil's Own, Ford seems satisfied with the end result of the picture and still respects Pitt.
Source: Esquire