Steve McQueen was deeply jealous of Paul Newman, whom he saw as a rival and a threat.
He had also refused the role of the Kid in Butch Cassidy when he learned that he would be paid less than Paul Newman. (Robert Redford would get the role, which would make him a star.)
A few years later, Steve McQueen was again asked to play opposite Paul Newman, this time in The Towering Inferno .
McQueen accepted the role on several conditions. He absolutely wanted to make sure that Paul Newman would not be THE star of the film.
It contractually requires:
-same salary as Paul Newman (1 million + 10% of profits)
-the same number of lines as Paul Newman
-his name on the poster written as big as Paul Newman
-and that his character in the film is very virile
Paul Newman was well aware of Steve McQueen's jealousy, but he decided to ignore it.
He would regret this collaboration, however, when he realized that McQueen had done everything he could to steal the show in an unfair manner: McQueen's character appeared in the film at the 43rd minute, while Newman's character had already said almost all of his lines. The rest of the film was therefore monopolized by McQueen, who embodied the ultimate authority figure, who directed the action and who, by force of circumstances, spoke more.
Noting this, director John Guillermin actually slipped a few more lines of dialogue into Newman's pocket for the second half of the film, to balance things out.
Upon seeing the finished film, Steve McQueen would have a fit of fury when he realized that Paul Newman had 12 more lines of dialogue than him.
In the inferiority complex genre…
He had also refused the role of the Kid in Butch Cassidy when he learned that he would be paid less than Paul Newman. (Robert Redford would get the role, which would make him a star.)
A few years later, Steve McQueen was again asked to play opposite Paul Newman, this time in The Towering Inferno .
McQueen accepted the role on several conditions. He absolutely wanted to make sure that Paul Newman would not be THE star of the film.
It contractually requires:
-same salary as Paul Newman (1 million + 10% of profits)
-the same number of lines as Paul Newman
-his name on the poster written as big as Paul Newman
-and that his character in the film is very virile
Paul Newman was well aware of Steve McQueen's jealousy, but he decided to ignore it.
He would regret this collaboration, however, when he realized that McQueen had done everything he could to steal the show in an unfair manner: McQueen's character appeared in the film at the 43rd minute, while Newman's character had already said almost all of his lines. The rest of the film was therefore monopolized by McQueen, who embodied the ultimate authority figure, who directed the action and who, by force of circumstances, spoke more.
Noting this, director John Guillermin actually slipped a few more lines of dialogue into Newman's pocket for the second half of the film, to balance things out.
Upon seeing the finished film, Steve McQueen would have a fit of fury when he realized that Paul Newman had 12 more lines of dialogue than him.
In the inferiority complex genre…