Anthony Hopkins has played everyone from a terrifying serial killer to the King of Asgard, and even a master swordsman in Zorro. Yet at 87, he continues to take on leading roles in movies, proving he’s one of the coolest working actors out there. But even legends have their “what just happened?” moments on set. For Anthony Hopkins, it came while working with Mickey Rourke on Michael Cimino’s 1990 thriller Desperate Hours.
Hopkins described Rourke as “very strange” and said their first scene basically set the tone for what would become a very tense film shoot. Rourke, who is known for being committed to his method acting style, actually hit Hopkins on the shoulder. And that’s all Hopkins needed to push him over the edge. “All I can remember was that this made me so angry, I punched the side of the car in genuine rage,” he said. “In fact, I punched it so hard, I knocked a dent in it.”
Of course, things didn’t stop there. Even off-camera, Rourke’s intensity caused friction with the cast. Hopkins recalled one scene where Rourke even pushed him around, and that was the breaking point. “I suddenly thought, ‘I’ve had enough of this s***,’ and walked off the set,” Hopkins admitted. Despite the tension, he returned to finish the film, which ended up being a huge flop.
At the end of filming, Mickey Rourke sent Anthony Hopkins a note: “He doesn’t like actors much but had enjoyed working with me.” While Hopkins found the sentiment relatable, the letter, ultimately, couldn’t erase the dread he felt walking to set each morning.
Rourke isn’t new to on-set clashes, though. Over the years, actors like Kevin Costner and Charlize Theron have reported issues with his method acting style, too. Hopkins’ story is just one of the few that actually made it into the public eye.
For Hopkins, however, surviving the filming of Desperate Hours was just one part of a career-long habit of navigating difficult colleagues. The two-time Academy Award winner has openly admitted he doesn’t like actors much, despite devoting six decades to the film industry. He’s also clashed and come close to physical altercations with co-stars, and even criticized the industry for its superficiality.
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