El Dorado (C8): why James Caan and John Wayne argued during the filming of El Dorado

Tuesday, February 21, 2023 at 9:05 p.m., C8 broadcast the western Eldorado. The opportunity for Tele-Leisure to reveal an anecdote that occurred during the filming of director Howard Hawks’ film.

Western fans will be delighted to dive (or dive back) into the fantastic western Eldorado, this Tuesday, February 21, 2023 at 9:05 p.m., on C8. The famous mercenary Cole Thornton, played by John Wayne, (who also experienced another shoot with Howard Hawks as a real ordeal) finds himself hired by the rich landowner in the American West, Bart Jason (Edward Asner) to help him in a feud with the McDonald family. While making a stop in the town of Eldorado in Texas, the local sheriff Jimmy Harrah (played by Robert Mitchum), an old friend of Thornton, comes to warn him of his presence in the town but above all of the mission for which he is invested. Although the director denies it, the film takes up the plot of the cult Rio Bravo, published seven years earlier. Certain key scenes appear there faithfully, although slightly modified and improved. However, Eldorado goes beyond the simple remake and presents a new version with a more complex plot and characters. Tensions appeared during the filming of the film, for a rather surprising reason… The actor had also already encountered tensions with Kirk Douglas during the filming of The Caravan on Fire.

The duo Howard Hawks and John Wayne

The first collaboration between Howard Hawks and John Wayne dates back to 1948, for the film The Red River. They will go through almost two decades together. Ten years later will be released Rio Bravo. El Dorado marks the fourth and penultimate collaboration between the two actors. Hatari will be released in 1962. This time John Wayne will play alongside actress Elsa Martinelli. film during which “the actors have often flirted with danger”, as an article by TeleStar published on April 9, 2017. Hawks’ career will end with John Wayne for Rio Lobo in 1970.

A game of chess gone wrong

The filming ofEldorado however, was not a postponement for James Caan and John Wayne. The latter had indeed the habit of disputing chess games between two scenes, recalls Allocinated. During a more heated game, the two men would have argued violently. And, according to legend, Robert Mitchum would have managed to separate them, to calm the spirits. This dispute was only temporary, because James Caan will tell years later funny anecdotes that occurred during the filming in an interview. All’s well That ends well !