A Former Mr. Universe Turned Down The Role That Made Clint Eastwood A Superstar

Before Sergio Leone rewrote the rules of filmmaking with his Spaghetti Westerns, he directed a couple of so-called Sword-and-Sandal efforts. These historical epics saw European filmmakers emulate big-budget Hollywood alternatives on relatively small budgets, and Leone got his start in this genre. When director Mario Bonnard fell ill while filming the 1959 film "The Last Days of Pompeii," Leone took over directorial duties and finished the movie. It was on this film that he met star Steve Reeves, and when the director broke away from Sword-and-Sandal fare a few years later, he tried to bring Reeves along. Luckily for audiences everywhere, things didn't quite pan out.

After "The Last Days of Pompeii," Leone made 1961's "The Colossus of Rhodes" or "Il Colosso di Rodi." At the time, a young Clint Eastwood wasn't impressed with Leone's work on the film, saying, "That wasn't my favorite picture. It was a Rory Calhoun t**s-and-sandals thing." Indeed, neither of Leone's Italian epics showcased his directorial flair as his later films did. That all changed with 1963's "A Fistful of Dollars," although if Leone had cast his original choice in the lead, he might have struggled to so obviously break away from the more formulaic filmmaking of his earlier projects.

In an interview with The Perfect Vision magazine (via DRKRM), Reeves recalled being offered the lead in "A Fistful of Dollars" — essentially a Western remake of Akira Kurosawa's "Yojimbo." As it turns out, however, Reeves and Leone hadn't exactly seen eye-to-eye on "The Last Days of Pompeii," but that wasn't the only reason the actor turned down the offer. As Reeves told the outlet, "I personally thought, how could an Italian director make a good Western out of a Japanese samurai film?"

It's almost impossible to imagine anyone but Clint Eastwood in the role of the Man with No Name. But Eastwood was far from Leone's first choice for "A Fistful of Dollars." In fact, if the director had his way, the actor's career trajectory, and arguably the history of cinema more generally, would look a lot different.

After "The Colossus of Rhodes," Leone prepared his Western remake of "Yojimbo." For the role of the mysterious stranger, Leone approached Steve Reeves. The "Last Days of Pompeii" star had forged a successful movie career in the 1950s, playing the hulking leads of historical epics, most notably portraying the titular hero in 1958's "Hercules" and the 1959 sequel "Hercules Unchained." Prior to that, he'd been a professional bodybuilder, winning multiple titles including Mr. America, Mr. World, and Mr. Universe and becoming one of the most prominent bodybuilders in the history of the sport. For whatever reason, Leone thought this muscular leading man was perfect for the Man with No Name. Reeves, however, wasn't interested. In his DRKRM interview, the actor recalled having clashed with Leone on "The Last Days of Pompeii." 

"We had a little tussle one time because there was a scene where I was being filmed behind bars and he told me to do it a certain way," Reeves said. "And I said, 'Why?' In other words, I needed a motivation. I'm not a great method actor, but you have to know why you're doing something. So he said, 'Because I said so.' I didn't like that, and I went after him. They grabbed me, and I cooled off, and after that, everything was fine." No wonder Reeves turned down the chance to work with Leone again.

It turns out Steve Reeves wasn't just uncomfortable collaborating with the man with whom he'd almost come to blows on the set of "The Last Days of Pompeii." The actor didn't actually think "A Fistful of Dollars" was a good idea from the outset. "[Leone] told me about it," Reeves told DRKRM. "But then I found out it was based on Kurosawa's 'Yojimbo' – he had taken it scene by scene and changed it into a Western [...] I personally thought, how could an Italian director make a good Western out of a Japanese samurai film? So I turned it down on that basis."

It seems Reeves didn't regret his decision even after the film and its two sequels became the hits they did. "I wouldn't have felt real good smoking a little cigar and squinting my eyes for three months," he said, adding:

"Frankly, Clint Eastwood was much better for it than I would have been. There are certain parts for certain people. To me, Johnny Weissmuller was the greatest Tarzan ever, and some other people, including Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lou Ferrigno, have tried to make Hercules and they bombed. If anybody tried to play 'Rocky' but Stallone, they would bomb. Same with Eastwood; he was perfect for that part."

Eastwood certainly didn't think so at first. Aside from initially being turned off by Leone's "t**s-and-sandals thing," he rewrote the original "Fistful of Dollars" script even after coming on board. Eastwood also has no illusions about why he was eventually cast in "Fistful of Dollars," telling The Independent back in 2009, "I was cheap." That, and Leone was running out of options.