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George Clooney dodged a bullet by bailing on a role in one of the worst movies in Will Smith’s career. Clooney was initially cast as Artemus Gordon, one of the two protagonists, in Barry Sonnenfeld’sWild Wild West. While the movie turned out to be bad, Clooney had essentially walked out of a film from the director of hits films likeThe Addams Family,Get Shorty, andMen in Black.
However, Sonnenfeld’s reputation wasn’t enough to save the film as the script had several issues and Clooney didn’t like the rewrites of the script. Once theBatman & Robinstar bailed from the movie, he went on to join director David O. Russell’sThree Kings. While it was a critically acclaimed film, Clooney’s experience with the director was horrible.
George Clooney Bailed From Will Smith’sWild Wild WestDue To Script Issues
After their success in the 1997 filmMen in Black, Barry Sonnenfeld andWill Smithdecided to team up for a steampunk Western film. Warner Bros. jumped at the chance to produceWild Wild Westwith this successful duo. They had also brought in another actor they thought was Smith’s perfect on-screen partner for the film.
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George Clooneywas still mostly known for his role as Dr. Doug Ross onERat this time, with his different movie projects not taking off as expected. Most of his projects during the late ’90s were just not the kinds that would make him a star in Hollywood. It was during this time that he took on one of the worst roles in his career inBatman & Robin.
When Clooney joinedWild Wild West, the writers had to make necessary changes to accommodate his charming nature. However, issues started popping up when Clooney began to second guess the potential of the film to give him a break. There was some interference from the executive side as well, which eventually contributed to Clooney’s exit.
Clooney felt that Smith had more funnier lines than him in the new script. Sonnenfeld wrote about what went down with Clooney on the set of the movie in his new memoirBest Possible Place, Worst Possible Time: True Stories from a Career in Hollywood. He wrote (via SlashFilm):
Our new writing team, Jeff Price and Peter Seaman, worked on a new draft of the script, solving some but not all our story problems. The stench in the room was Jon Peter’s insistence that there must be a scene where Will Smith appears in drag. As horrible as that sounds, it got worse. On Thanksgiving morning, Clooney called. He didn’t like the new draft. Will had more funny lines than George. He was bailing.
Clooney instead chose to act inDavid O. Russell‘sThree Kings, which received critical acclaim.Kevin Klinereplaced him in the role in Wild Wild West, which went on toearn negative reviews from critics. Clooney couldn’t have afforded a Razzie at that point in his career, but things weren’t easy duringThree Kingsas well.
George Clooney Bashed David O. Russell, Vowing Never To Work With Him Again
WhileThree Kingswas a wise career move, George Clooney hated working on that movie. During a profile interview withGQ, Clooney shared that he wouldn’t allot five months at this age to shoot a film with David O. Russell. While he wanted to make good films, he was not going to“have a miserable f**k like David O. Russell making my life hell.”
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In another interview withEW, he further shared his issues with the director calling him a“weirdo”and sharing that he was hard to talk to. He later claimed toThe Washington Postthat he had witnessed the director assault an extra on the set and when Clooney went to defend the extra, they had an altercation.
Other actors likeAmy Adamshave alsocalled out the director’s behavior. She had witnessed the director treating people badly on the set ofAmerican Hustle(via EW).
BothWild Wild WestandThree Kingsare available for rent on AppleTV.
Hashim Asraff
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3018
Hashim Asraff is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, with over 2,800 articles published on celebrity culture, comic book movies, and major TV franchises. With a background in Sociology and a keen interest in pop culture, Hashim brings a unique lens to breaking news stories, character deep-dives, film rankings, and fan-driven perspectives.His coverage often includes the MCU, DCU, hit network shows, and celebrity profiles, giving readers a rich blend of entertainment and analysis. A longtime fan of crime and investigative series, Hashim has watched thousands of episodes of NCIS, Criminal Minds, Law & Order: SVU, Bones, Blue Bloods, and The RookieA passionate storyteller and wordsmith, Hashim has also worked as a ghostwriter and managed multiple social media handles. He brought his writing expertise to FandomWire to also pursue his lifelong love for cinema and television.
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David O. RussellGeorge ClooneyWill Smith
