Spartacus received further support when the young President, John F. With this act, blacklisted filmmakers everywhere were freed of the unjust prejudices that had ruined their careers and lives so much so that rival projects competed to beat Spartacus in announcing their hiring of blacklisted writers too. Universal panicked and made cuts to the film to avoid any hint of a pro-Communist message, as well as scenes of suggested bisexuality in Crassus (the scene was reinstated in the 1990s with Anthony Hopkins seamlessly performing Olivier’s dialogue as the original audio track was damaged). Nonetheless, Trumbo’s name was up there for all to see. In post-production, Douglas made the decision to defy the blacklist and include Trumbo’s real name in the credits. And cinematic history was made.Īs was history itself. In the same tense exchange, Douglas demanded Kubrick shoot the “I Am Spartacus!” scene, which the director thought was a “stupid” idea. But he agreed to do it. When he cut all closeup shots of the crucified Spartacus from the film’s final scene, a furious Douglas threw a chair at him and, when he didn’t bother to change his clothes for days while shooting, losing the crew’s respect, Douglas approached the director on horseback, pinned him into a corner and ordered the “little prick” go buy new clothes. Kubrick’s arrogance and complete lack of empathy earned him the tag ‘Stanley Hubris’. He made the original actress cast as love interest Varinia, Sabina Bethmann, cry by fake-firing her to see if she could show any emotion (she was subsequently replaced by Jean Simmons). What Kubrick did not bring, however, was people skills. Kubrick later complained that Spartacus lacked his personal stamp, omitting it when listing his films, but he still brought directorial flair, invention and spectacle to the film, including the still-impressive battle scene which sees Spartacus’ defeat at the hands of Crassus. Douglas then called up a young up-and-coming director he had worked with on Paths of Glory (1957): Stanley Kubrick. He filmed the opening scene, but as he began the gladiatorial school scenes it was clear he was overwhelmed by the size of the project and lacked focus or control. Lawrence… Finally, Anthony Mann was hired. David Lean also turned down the directorship in favour of pursuing a little film about T.E. Olivier had wanted to direct and play Spartacus, but (to Douglas’ relief, as he wanted the role) conceded that his theatre engagements wouldn’t allow him the time. Douglas called their bluff and eventually UA backed down, but keeping Trumbo’s involvement in his project a secret was no small feat – if it become common knowledge, Universal would have backed out.Īssembling an impressive cast including Laurence Olivier, Peter Ustinov, Charles Laughton and Tony Curtis, Douglas now had to find a director. Fresh from the success of Douglas’ historical epic The Vikings (1958), United Artists were in early pre-production with The Gladiators, starring Yul Brynner as Spartacus. To make matters worse, a rival Spartacus project was also in the air. However, while his novel proved popular, his script was deemed by Lewis and Douglas as “crap”. He self-published the novel and shifted tens of thousands of copies from his basement.
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Fast had also done time in prison for his open affiliation with the Communist Party, and despite being a bestselling author upon his release nobody would publish Spartacus. Using the name ‘Sam Jackson’, he met Kirk Douglas at his house and agreed to write the script for Spartacus in 1958, with producer Eddie Lewis being credited with writing it publicly (much to his embarrassment).ĭouglas’ production company, Bryna, had acquired the rights for Spartacus for just $100, on condition that the script would be written by the book’s author, Howard Fast. During the 1950s, Trumbo won Oscars for writing Roman Holiday (1953) and The Brave One (1956) the former was collected by another writer who (reluctantly) took credit for the script, while the latter was awarded to one of the many pseudonyms Trumbo used over the decade.
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Many blacklisted writers still worked, but could not claim the credits or payment they deserved.
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After a brief prison sentence in 1950, his blacklisting meant nobody would hire him at least not publicly.