Treat Williams Was Scared He Was Actually Going To Catch Fire Filming Once Upon A Time In America
Hollywood was shocked by the news that journeyman actor Treat Williams recently passed away following a motorcycle accident. Although he was revered by genre fans for the aquatic horror adventure "Deep Rising" and the glorious pulpy camp of "The Phantom," Williams had been acting in multiple genres since the mid-1970s. His big break would come in the film adaptation of the controversial counterculture musical "Hair" which led to his first Golden Globe nomination.
Williams would go on to have plenty of starring roles over his 40-year career, but he reflected on multiple occasions that one of his favorite roles was one of the smallest speaking parts he ever had. Sergio Leone's sprawling film "Once Upon A Time in America" is mostly remembered for the performances of Robert De Niro as Noodles — a street-smart bootlegger in New York City's Lower East Side — and for James Woods' sinister turn as his devious partner Max. The four-hour epic also features Elizabeth McGovern, Joe Pesci, Burt Young, Tuesday Weld, and Williams in a small but pivotal role as a boss for the Teamsters named Jimmy O'Donnell.
In a classic scene where his character is captured by a rival gang, Williams was strapped down to a slab during filming and subjected to a fair bit of psychological torture that actually had the young performer fearing for his own safety. Ever the actor's actor, Williams remained calm and completed the scene for Leone even though he was legitimately worried that he could possibly be set on fire. That's some serious dedication.
Putting out fire with gasoline
Sergio Leone's staggering direction along with Ennio Morricone's pulsing score already put "Once Upon a Time in America" in the pantheon of gangster films. Although the original studio edit of the film was a disappointment when it was first released by Warner Bros. in 1984, the restored "European" cut is repeatedly listed as one of the greatest films ever made. Every great crime saga needs a torture scene, a task that was left to Williams to provide. In a joyous interview for People, Williams told the story of how he almost thought Leone's masterpiece might wind up being his last film if things went sideways. He said:
"In one scene, Richie Bright is the actor and he sprays me with gasoline. I'm tied in a bin in a horrible place and then he starts asking me questions and he's lighting matches. But what I didn't realize was and I said, 'Why don't you put seltzer water in it so I get an uncomfortable feeling when it goes on my face and up my nose. But then I realized that the hose that they were using had recently held a lot of gasoline. I got very nervous and Richie was lighting the matches because I thought there's so much gas in this stuff that this thing could light up. So I was like, 'Don't throw the matches on me just in case!'"
It's no wonder why Williams remembers that day so vividly. Luckily, he would go on to appear in more than 100 films and television shows, but the prolific actor always held "Once Upon A Time in America" in the highest regard. "It's funny because people say 'What are your favorite films?' and although I play a small role in it, it's always one of the top three I mention of films that I'm proud to be a part of," he said.
He will be greatly missed.