Clint Eastwood Almost Quit Acting After Starring in ‘Probably the Worst Film Ever Made’
For many, it’s difficult to picture the entertainment industry without prolific actor Clint Eastwood. The Oscar-winner has inspired many talents, first as an actor and then as a filmmaker. But after featuring in a movie he once dubbed the worst film ever made, Eastwood seriously reconsidered continuing as an actor.
What would make Clint Eastwood quit acting?
Clint Eastwood has been making contributions to cinema for decades. The actor is currently 92 years old and still going strong, having just recently both directed and starred in 2021’s Cry Macho, and still, the Oscar-winner has no intention of settling down. In an interview with the LA Times, Eastwood discussed why he still directed films in his older years.
“I just like it,” Eastwood said. “I have nothing against other directors, but I might have a whole different take on things and I don’t want to be thinking, ‘Why did I give it to him?'”
On the other hand, Eastwood admitted that he’s considered quitting acting a few times. But he’ll only truly stop when fans express they no longer want to see him on screen.
“What the hell am I still working for in my 90s? Are people going to start throwing tomatoes at you? I’ve gotten to the point where I wondered if that was enough, but not to the point where I decided it was,” he continued. “If you roll out a few turkeys, they’ll tell you soon enough.”
Clint Eastwood almost quit acting after starring in the worst film ever made
Eastwood has remarked on how fortunate he is to be in the position he is today. He remembered telling his father that he was dropping out of a college in LA to further pursue his acting career.
“He said, ‘Don’t get too wrapped up in that, it could be really disappointing,’” Eastwood recalled his father advising. “I said, ‘I think it’s worth a try.’ But I always remember it could have gone the other way.”
For Eastwood, it did almost go the other way when he was cast in a film he wasn’t too fond of. When he was starting out, Eastwood was cast in a movie for Fox titled Ambush at Cimarron Pass.
“It was probably the worst film ever made,” Eastwood told The Hollywood Reporter. “But I had the second lead in it and an actor named Scott Brady was the lead. And the film was made in eight days. So it was really el speedo grande.”
After seeing what Cimarron Pass was like, Eastwood was ready to quit the business.
“I went to see it and I saw that film and I said I’m through. I’ve got to go back to school. I’ve got to do something else, I’ve got to get a job of other sorts,” he added. “And then finally, I accidentally ran into somebody out at CBS on Beverly Boulevard and they were doing a Western called Rawhide. And they cast me as one of the leads.”
Starring in ‘Million Dollar Baby’ made Clint Eastwood want to continue acting
Million Dollar Baby is a historical film for many reasons. Directed by and starring Clint Eastwood, it won the 2004 Academy Award for best picture. Apart from that, the film won Hilary Swank an Oscar for Best Lead Actress as well. But perhaps the film’s most underrated accomplishment was that it reinvigorated Eastwood’s passion for acting. The star once said that he was done performing in front of the camera and would focus more on filmmaking. But he then had a change of heart.
“I think I started saying that back a few years ago, I said, ‘I don’t think I’ll act anymore, I’ll stay behind the camera,’ and then Million Dollar Baby came along and I liked that role,” he said via Reuters. “Now I’ve done Gran Torino.”
