Clint Eastwood’s Dirty Harry Rejection: John Wayne’s Embarrassing Imitation!

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Initially, the script for the film “McQ” was turned down by Clint Eastwood, but John Wayne eagerly took it instead. Various screen legends were in contention for the lead role in “Dirty Harry“, including Paul Newman, Frank Sinatra, and John Wayne. Each of them declined the part due to reasons such as graphic violence or perceived political insensitivity. Eventually, Clint Eastwood would accept the role, which ultimately propelled him to A-list stardom. The character of “Dirty Harry” became one of his most iconic personas; Eastwood would reprise this role in another four “Dirty Harry” movies.

The main character of the movie was a rebellious figure, often testing limits, which inspired subsequent projects aiming to replicate that same intensity. One notable example is the 1974 film Death Wish, starring Charles Bronson, which some consider even more contentious. Additionally, McQ and Brannigan also fall into this category, as they both featured John Wayne in the lead roles. These action-packed films portrayed Wayne as tough detectives armed with Magnum revolvers, willing to bend or break rules to achieve justice. Essentially, after turning down the original opportunity a few years earlier, John Wayne headlined two films that could be seen as imitations of “Dirty Harry”.

Clint Eastwood Rejected The Dirty Harry Imitation McQ Before John Wayne Took It

Eastwood didn’t sound impressed with John Wayne’s McQ

During an interview with Paul Nelson, as found in the book “Conversations with Clint: Paul Nelson’s Lost Interviews with Clint Eastwood, 1979-1983”, Eastwood was asked about John Wayne and his thoughts on Wayne’s final film, “The Shootist.” This discussion prompted Nelson to describe Wayne’s portrayal of a character similar to Dirty Harry as “unflattering” or “embarrassing.” In response, Eastwood seemed to be criticizing the films “McQ” and “Brannigan,” stating that he found them less than impressive.

I know. In fact, one of them was originally written for me: McQ. I passed on it.

There has been much discussion about an alleged rivalry between Eastwood and Wayne, yet Wayne himself reportedly said to Clint, “It would be good for us to make a movie together, kid“, as his career was gaining momentum. By then, Clint had established himself as the symbol of a grittier, more violent, and cynical type of Western character, just as the genre’s popularity began to decline.

One example of Wayne missing out on an opportunity is when he turned down Dirty Harry, which became a massive success for Eastwood instead. However, Wayne later agreed to star in films that imitated Dirty Harry – roles that Eastwood had previously declined. This suggests that Wayne may have regretted not capitalizing on the initial opportunity.

It makes perfect sense that Eastwood declined another film in the vein of McQ, given he was committed to the Dirty Harry sequel Magnum Force. In comparison, Wayne’s portrayals as a Dirty Harry-like character seemed like poor imitations of Eastwood’s thriller prowess. To add to this, it became clear that “The Duke” wasn’t suitable for the role in any case. The films themselves are typical detective thrillers with little of the edge found in Dirty Harry, but they do manage to deliver some well-executed action scenes.

Why John Wayne Fronted Two “Embarassing” Dirty Harry Ripoffs After Rejecting The Original

Frank Sinatra was the problem

The screenplay for “Dirty Harry” had a circuitous journey before reaching Clint Eastwood. Initially, the lead character was envisioned to be older than Eastwood’s age at the time, making industry veterans like Paul Newman and Frank Sinatra the initial choices. Interestingly, Frank Sinatra had agreed to play Dirty Harry (under the tentative title Dead Right) but eventually declined due to a wrist operation. Even Wayne felt displeased when he was offered the role only after Sinatra stepped down from it.

As per the book “John Wayne: The Man Behind the Myth“, Wayne expressed displeasure about being given roles that were initially turned down by Frank Sinatra. At this point in his career, Wayne was predominantly focusing on Western films, having recently won an Academy Award for “True Grit“. Many of his subsequent projects, such as “Rio Lobo” (the last film directed by the legendary Howard Hawks) and “Cahill, U.S. Marshal“, seemed like repetitive versions of movies he had made numerous times before. A role like that of Dirty Harry could have given Wayne a fresh image among younger audiences.

Regardless, if Wayne had taken on the role of Harry instead, the movie would have had a distinctly different feel. Given his aversion to excessive violence or profanity, those aspects might have been less prominent in the film. However, Wayne himself expressed remorse for turning down Dirty Harry, as he felt it was a modern take on the tough characters he had portrayed in Westerns earlier. This is why he pursued roles like McQ and Brannigan, but ultimately accepting lesser versions of these roles turned out to be another misstep for him.

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2025-05-25 16:48