32 Biggest Actor Vs. Director Fights

David O. Russell directed the movie.Three Kings.George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, and Ice Cube starred in it. Clooney disliked Russell's treatment of extras on set.Witnesses recalled.Clooney told Russell, "If you're going to pick on somebody, pick on me." Russell replied, "Why don't you just f**king remember your lines for once?" This led the two men nearly to a fight.

Clooney said Russell insulted him and head-butted him. This forced Clooney to put Russell in a headlock once. Russell claims Clooney exaggerated the incident.called him "lying... b*tch." Clooney's dislike of Russell made the actor say he wouldpunched RussellIf he comes near me again, I will sock him in the mouth.

David O. Russell was filmingI Heart Huckabees.He and Lily Tomlin did not get along. A camera filmed some of their fights, creating voyeuristic behind-the-scenes videos.

Russell is known for on-set tantrums, and Tomlingot caught in his wake. Tomlin accepted the two on-set fights.noted, "it was just temper. We just both had a bad temper fit." She added, "It happens sometimes -- but David is a very mercurial person, and that's part of why he's so brilliant."

An experience that supposedly made Sean Conneryretire from acting permanently, the actor repeatedly head-butted director Stephen Norrington on the set ofThe League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.Connery blamed Norrington's inexperience for the drama, resenting waiting on set.

Constant tension caused several near-fights between the actor and the director. Connery was not the only one frustrated during the shoot.Crew members later said Norrington, "doesn’t know what he wants," and "He shoots a huge amount of film. He'll do 10 setups when you usually only do two. Most of this movie is going to end up on the cutting-room floor — if it ever gets finished."

Connery threw up his hands andquit the business entirely, disappointed with the process. Norrington also stopped directing after the failed film.

After makingTransformers., star Megan Fox made a public tirade against director Michael Bay.comparing him to both Hitler and Napoleon.. She called him a "he's a nightmare to work," but when she said, "when you get him away from set, and he's not in director mode, I kind of really enjoy his personality because he's so awkward, so hopelessly awkward.... He has no social skills at all. ... He's vulnerable and fragile in real life and then on set he's a tyrant."

The fact that Fox used public insults bothered Bay and producer Steven Spielberg, who quickly fired the actress from the franchise.

After Fox's comments,Bay dismissed herI wasn't hurt because I know it's just Megan. Megan wants a response. She gets it the wrong way. I'm sorry, Megan. I apologize for making you work twelve hours. I regret making you show up on time. Movies aren't always warm and fuzzy.

Bay and Fox ended their feud.Bay cast her in his Teen Mutant Ninja Turtles film.Fox explained her role.Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesfilm. Fox explained her role.her roleIn their spat, she never withdrew comments but acknowledged, "I thought I was right to speak the way that I spoke. As I got a little older, I understood regardless of my issues, they should always have remained private. You should never blast someone like that in public."

During the filming ofChinatown, director Roman Polanski and actress Faye Dunaway often clashed. Allegedly, Polanski would not lether take bathroom breaksduring a scene, so she once peed in a cup and threw it at him. Interactions varied, but Dunaway reportedly urinated in a cup and threw it in Polanski's face.

Other incidents showed how Polanski and Dunaway clashed on set. Once,Dunaway had a stray hairduring a shoot, Polanski walked up to the actress and plucked the hair from her head.

Disagreementsover artistic mattersHarrison Ford and Ridley Scott began disagreements when they teamed up forBlade RunnerScott wanted Ford's character inBlade Runner, Rick Deckard, to be a replicant, but Ford strongly opposed this. The actor and director fought about it constantly; Scott insisted Deckard was a replicant. Scott put elements of Deckard's replicant status intomany cuts of the film.

For the sequel,Blade Runner 2049,director Denis Villeneuve watched the ongoing dispute between Ford and Scott at a dinner with all three men. Villeneuve said, "Harrison and Ridley are still arguing about that. If you put them in the same room, they don't agree. They start talking very loud when they do. It's very funny."

Katherine Heigl became a star in Apatow's filmKnocked Up, but Heigl said in an interview the film was hard to make and it portrayed women poorly.Heigl toldVanity Fair, "It paints the women as shrews, as humorless and uptight, and it paints the men as lovable, goofy, fun-loving guys. It exaggerated the characters, and I had a hard time with it, on some days. I’m playing such a b**ch; why is she being such a killjoy? Why is this how you’re portraying women? Ninety-eight percent of the time it was an amazing experience, but it was hard for me to love the movie."

After that, Apatow and star Seth Rogendismissed Heigl, calling her "bat-s*** crazy." Heigl later clarified her remarkstelling Howard Stern, "I liked the movie a lot. I just didn’t like me," but she never apologized to Apatow.

In 2017, Apatowaddressed the commentsHeigl defends herself, saying, "She doesn't need to apologize for anything.... She had some commentary about"Knocked Up.She disliked the movie after it released. She felt awesome in it, but it felt confusing. It was just an odd thing.

Director William Friedkin wanted the stunts.He wanted the stunts.in.The Exorcist.Friedkin wanted the looks to be real. He made star Ellen Burstyn do the stunts herself. Friedkin put Burstyn in harnesses and wires that pulled on her repeatedly to mimic being thrown across the room by her possessed daughter. Friedkin insisted, "it has to look real," after Burstyn showed she was being pulled too hard.

After Burstyn told Friedkin she worried about her safety, he agreed to ease up. The actress later said she did not know if he actually did. Ultimately, the physicality Friedkin asked for caused Burstyn to get permanent spinal injuries.permanent spinal injuries.:

He is a brilliant director. I do not want to criticize him; however, I hurt my lower back and have had to deal with it since. But it is fine.

This is one of the most famous fights of all time.Tony Kaye hated Ed Norton.before filming began onAmerican History X.Kaye claimed Norton lacked the acting skill for the role. During filming, Kaye saw Norton as an actor who sought too much praise. Norton took so much creative control that Kaye threatened to remove his namefrom the film entirely.

During the editing, Kaye and Norton clashed. The director was banned from the cutting room entirely for a period. Kaye called Norton "a narcissistic dilettante," and Kaye sued the projectfor $200 millionKaye sued the project for $200 million, calling Norton "a narcissistic dilettante," and he stopped working on it entirely for a time.for $200 million.director Alfred Hitchcock, and her career dropped because of it. Hedren claims Hitchcock made advances toward her, and

Tippi Hedren spoke out against her.The Birds.Tippi Hedren spoke out against director Alfred Hitchcock, and her career declined because of it. Hedren claims Hitchcock hit on her, and he made it clear he would "ruin" her.The BirdsHe made it clear he would "ruin" her.Marnie, the second film they made together, either. Hedren says Hitchcock followed her home and put a door from his office straight to

Hitchcock's actions went beyond the set of The Birds.The Birds.or Marnie.Marnie.According to Hedren, Hitchcock stalked her at her home and put a door from his office right into her dressing room so he could enter any time.her dressing room.To Hedren, "It was sexual, it was perverse.... The harder I fought him, the more aggressive he became."

First Brad Pitt threatened to quit.The Devil's Own.He found something in The Devil's Own.the script incoherent and incomplete.But after deciding to stay with the production and work with director Alan Pakula, he realized he should have trusted his instincts.

Pitt and Pakula did not work well together, and one producer observed that they had different versions of the film in mind.one producer observed.Pitt eventually called Pakula's direction "the most irresponsible bit of film making - if you can even call it that - that I've ever seen."

Cher was unsure about doing Burlesque.Burlesque.but she was persuaded by director Steve Antin's "vision."Steve Antin's "vision."

On set, Cher needed a "calmer set," as Antin and Sony Pictures' Screen Gems president Clint Culpepper fought it out.Cher fought it out.Some accounts say Cher also clashed with her co-star, Christina Aguilera, something the young songstress refuted.The young songstress refuted it..

The experience ended disappointingly for everyone. Cher admitted of the film.Cher admitted of the film.Cher said, "It wasn't a good film."

Working with Bruce Willis for the film...Cop Out was apparently "soul crushing"for director Kevin Smith, who did not shy away from the experience. Willis proved difficult to work with; he did not even show up to the wrap party. This made Smith call Willis "the unhappiest, most bitter, and meanest emo-b*tch" he ever worked with. Willis replied by saying...Smith is just a "whiner."

In 2019, Willis and Smith made peace, but the actor unexpectedly...sent Smith a text that said, "Dear Kevin, I have pictures I want to send you. I need your home address. Love, Beedub." That text led to a phone call that ended the feud.

Sean Penn said that talking to his...U-Turndirector Oliver Stone acted like "talking to a pig."For what Penn called "seven whole hellacious weeks," he asked himself many times, 'What the hell am I doing out here in the desert with Oliver Stone?'

The extent of their feud remains unclear. In 2016, rumors circulatedthat Stone arranged a meeting between Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, a notorious Mexican drug lord, and Penn to try and get movie rights to the former's life.

Werner Herzog actually made a documentary about his rocky relationship with actor Klaus Kinski.called My Best Fiend. Kinski called Herzog a "nasty, sadistic, treacherous, cowardly creep" in his autobiography., while Herzog..., while Herzog...even once threatened to kill the actor, pulling out a gun on one of their film sets.

The two made five movies together, reportedly fighting with intensity on many occasions.Herzog recalled one time when Kinski "rave[d] for 48 hours" and times when, "it was very difficult to talk to him, because he answered back as Jesus."

Director David Fincher averages about 50 takes per scene, which did not look good with hisZodiacStar Jake Gyllenhaal reportedly got fed up and insulted by Fincher's process. He found itvery "hard to hear"that the work he was doing got deleted and re-shot over and over again.Gyllenhaal describedhow Fincher "paints with people" but said "it's tough to be a color."

Costar Robert Downey Jr., who called Fincher a "disciplinarian," acted less diplomatically on the set ofZodiac. Downey allegedly left jars of urine around the set to protest Fincher's long shooting schedules.

Bjork and Lars von Trier did not get along during the filming of the singer's acting debut,Dancer in the DarkThe director accused her of eating her costume. She accused him of being an emotional pornographer. Von Trier seemed unbothered by the accusations. He told interviewers, "I'm pro-pornography, so those words don't bother me at all—pornography shows things as they are!"

Bjork also accused Von Trier of punishing her for rejecting his sexual advances. Bjork stated, "He sulked...and created for his team an impressive net of illusion where I was framed as the difficult one." In 2011, Bjork pushed harder, writingA letter.to Nicole Kidman to stop her from working with the director.

Von Trier admitted he and Bjork were "very mean to each other." He said his one regretwas that "[he] wasn't meane"r." Both attributed their tough relationship to a shared problem. They made decisions like "a dictator" instead of considering the final product.

Creative differences plagued the relationship between star Dustin Hoffman and director Sydney PollackA letter on the set of the hit film.Tootsie.The two were at "war," but Pollack called it a "friendly war."

The two could not agree on creative ideas for the movie. They argued constantly on set and in trailers. They showed respect, though.Pollack acknowledged, "Legally I have control of the picture. But that doesn’t mean I owe him a lot morally, which I do.... You can’t make an actor do anything. Make him do anything. Now, I can’t direct a scene I don’t believe in either, and sometimes both things have happened."

Marlon Brando reportedly worked with great difficulty on the set of the filmThe Score.. Brando did not want to be filmed below the shoulders in the movie, so heMarlon Brando walked around nude on set.

Brando used name-calling on set, calling Oz "Miss Piggy"—a nod to his puppetry work for the Muppets.Brando even told Oz."I bet you wish I was a puppet so you could … make me do what you want."

Brando sometimes would not evenBrando acknowledged director Frank Oz., only taking direction from his costars Ed Norton and Robert DeNiro. Oz admits he had to sometimeswatch the filming being done from outside the set.

Val Kilmer may have played a superhero inBatman Forever, but the film's directorfound him to be anything butregarding how he treated the crew. Things became physical after Schumacher scolded him for being "irrational" and "ballistic" with crew members.

Schumacher said he had no choice but to confront Kilmer. Schumacher recalled, "He was badly behaved, he was rude and inappropriate," he said. "I was forced to tell him that this would not be tolerated for one more second." After that talk, the two did not speak for two weeks, which Schumacher called "bliss."

The rocky relationship also affected Kilmer's short time in theBatmanSchumacher admitted the franchise quit, "we sort of fired him." He said, "It probably depends on who’s telling the story."

Oliver Stone and Richard Dreyfuss found little common ground while making the George Bush biopic.W. When asked about the experience, Dreyfuss first equated Stone with conservative political commentator Sean Hannity, then called the director a "fascist" on The View. He admitted the irony of the statement, "You know, you can be a fascist even when you’re on the left."

Dreyfuss's comments made Stone strike back, saying Dreyfuss looked "so old" playing Vice President Dick Cheney.

Jessica Alba disliked her Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surferdirector Tim Story because he constantly criticized her. Alba said Story disliked how she cried, asking her to "cry pretty.""

He continued, "Don't do that thing with your face. Just make it flat. We can CGI the tears in."Alba found his behavior inhumane, so much so that she considered :

It made me think: Am I not good enough? Are my instincts and my emotions not good enough? Do people hate them so much that they don't want me to be a person? Am I not allowed to be a person in my work? So I just said, "F**k it. I don't care about this business anymore."

Sir Laurence Olivier thought Marilyn Monroe was a total "b*tch," on the set of The Prince and the Showgirl. Olivier thought Monroe lacked talent and sex appeal. He also got angry about her obsession with method actingand showed her little patience.

Monroe showed no real desire to interact with the cast and crew, which angered Olivier. This led the actor to humiliate her on set by saying "try to be sexy." According to legendary cinematographer Jack Cardiff, Monroe "never forgave him" for that remark.

Vincent Gallo wanted to cast Christina Ricci in his film Buffalo 66, but regretted it right away. Gallo claims the actress was drunk or on cough syrup the whole time, and in an interview, called her "an ungrateful c---" who was "basically a puppet."

Gallo's criticism of Ricci included her looks. This made Ricci say, "I have no interest in seeing anything he ever does again." Looking back, Ricci saw the whole thing as a mistake:

I was seventeen. It was my first movie away without my mother. Not a smart choice. I really did not grasp what was happening most of the time working with a crazy lunatic man. I had never met such insanity.

Director Paul Verhoeven and actress Sharon Stone had a love-hate relationship while filmingBasic Instinct. Stone's experiences may have been shaped by Verhoeven's trickery—or at least how she saw it.

According to StoneVerhoeven told me when we shot the scene the light reflected off my underwear. He said taking off my underwear would show a shadow, not my pubic hair, as we see in the film where everyone claims to see my vagina.

Stone believed him. Then, seeing the scene in the theater with an audience, she felt mortified and slapped him. Verhoeven insists otherwise.Stone knew about the extent of the nudity.Stone knew about the extent of the nudity.

Director John Schlesinger hated his star Madonna.Schlesinger blamed his heart attack on the singer. He said Madonna's attempts to change scenes, her demands to 'beautify' her look with special effects, and her requests for the soundtrack infuriated him.The Next Best ThingFrom his hospital bed, Schlesinger chided the film's producer, Tom Rosenberg, for 'being influenced by Madonna.' He stated, 'I do not for one moment think that their behavior has not added to the reasons I have ended up here.' Madonna's representatives countered the accusation, saying, 'No one has ever questioned her level of professional behavior.'He blamed his heart attack on the singer. Schlesinger said Madonna's attempts to change scenes, her demands to "beautify" her look with special effects, and her...The film's director Abdellatif Kechiche called his star Lea Seydoux an 'arrogant and spoiled child.' He pointed out her lack of experience, saying she had 'a lot to learn' about their set experience.Seydoux and co-star Adele Exarchopoulos offered little positive comment about Kechiche.They called him a 'bully' who 'trapped' them on set and degraded them while filming sex scenes. Kechiche responded with an open letter calling Seydoux a 'slanderous' liar he would see in court.Though they did not work together long, that did not stop a feud between Peter Jackson and Ryan Gosling from starting.

Gosling was originally cast in the Mark Wahlberg role in The Lovely Bones.Schlesinger scolded the film's producer.Tom Rosenberg, for "being influenced by Madonna." I do not think their behavior did not add to why I ended up here." Madonna's reps answered the accusation by stating, "No one questioned her professional conduct."

After Val Kilmer allegedly got fired from The Island of Dr. Moreau, John Frankenheimer took over directing. Under Stanley, Kilmer proved demanding and acted out when he did not get his way. Once Frankenheimer directed, Kilmer's behavior worsened. Frustrated one day, Frankenheimer reportedly said, 'Even if I was directing a film called The Life of Val Kilmer, I wouldn’t have that prick in it.' The film hit hard in 2013.Director Abdellatif Kechiche called his star Lea Seydoux an "arrogant and spoiled child." He pointed out her lack of experience and said she had "a lot to learn" about set experience.

Seydoux and co-star Adele Exarchopoulos offered little positive comment about Kechiche.They called him a "bully."He "trapped" them on set and degraded them while filming sex scenes. Kechiche sent an open letter calling Seydoux a "slanderous" liar he would pursue in court.

Peter Jackson and Ryan Gosling's feud started even though they did not work together long. Gosling was first cast in the Mark Wahlberg part inThe Lovely Bones.Gosling gained 60 pounds for the role but did not talk to Jackson about it. Gosling "really felt" the character "should weigh 210 pounds," but Jackson disagreed.In another version, Gosling chose to leave production, telling

Jackson's partner and collaborator, Fran Walsh,"I am not the right person for this role. I am too young."After Val Kilmer supposedly got

the original director Richard Stanley fired from The Island of Dr. Moreau. John Frankenheimer took over directing. Under Stanley, Kilmer showed he was demanding, acting out when he did not get his way. Once Frankenheimer directed, Kilmer's behavior worsened. Frustrated one day, Frankenheimer reportedly said, "Even if I directed a film called The Life of Val Kilmer, I would not have that jerk in it." When discussing the movie in 2017, Kilmer complained about the bad shoot.

When commenting on the movie in 2017, Kilmer lamented the problematic shoot:

Frankenheimer wanted a comeback. He froze up with Marlon's gutsy improv style. Marlon just tried to save a weak script. People blamed him for ruining the film, even though he died two-thirds through. The film looks bad without him.

Henry Fonda signed on to star in John Ford'sMister RobertsHe knew the project would struggle. They shot the movie on Midway Island at a Marine Corps air station for 45 days in 1954. Tensions started high. As the film's star and director developed different movie visions, their differences inpersonalities and ideologiesbecame more and more obvious.

Ford grew angry after hearing Fonda's script comments on the first day of shooting. Instead of changing things with Fonda, Ford stood up andpunched him in the faceFord later apologized. He was replaced on the film after he needed gall bladder surgery. Ford and Fonda worked together again.They worked together again.However, the latter appeared in Ford'sHow The West Was Wonin 1962.

Director Stanley Kubrick reportedly critiqued every part of Shelley Duvall's performance in the classic filmThe ShiningThis nearly made her break down. He holds the record for most takes for one scene with dialogue when he made Duvall hit Jack Nicholson's characterwith a bat 127 times.

Duvall called working with Kubrick "almost unbearable", but admitted there were "really very nice" parts. Still, the film's stress made Duvall sick andBut Duvall admitted there were "really very nice" parts. Stress from the film made Duvall sick., which she blamed on the director and his harsh demands., all of which she blamed on the director and his harsh demands.

After many auditions, Freddie Prinze Jr. got his first big movie role withI Know What You Did Last SummerUnfortunately,Prinze said at least.), director Jim Gillespie did not want him for the role and showed his feelings on set. On his podcast“That Was Pretty Scary,”Prinze said, "There was no passive aggressiveness — which I hate — he was very direct: ‘I don’t want you in this movie.’ Hearing that first job and hearing those words just destroys you, man. It just destroys you."

Gillespie claims he saw things differently, saying in a2017 DigitalSpy interview, “Nobody wanted Freddie; they thought he was too soft…He got to the point where he was saying, ‘I’m done,’ and I really had to plead with him to stick with it because I wanted him.” Regardless of who tells the story, Prinze made clear that working with Gillespie was a bad time. He found a good point: "I’m forever grateful to Jim for being such an *sshole because… I’ve been prepared for every lesser a-hole in the business."