The 1984 Charles Bronson thriller nearly began under a different director and then underwent a last-minute production crisis. Fielder Cook was attached during the film's preparation, but according to screenwriter John M. Crowther, it became obvious after roughly a week of pre-production that Cook was not capable of handling the project. Cook was dismissed just days before filming was scheduled to begin in Guadalajara, Mexico. Producer Pancho Kohner and executive producer Lance Hool then brought in J. Lee Thompson, who had already directed Bronson in several films, including St. Ives, The White Buffalo, Caboblanco and 10 to Midnight. Thompson effectively had to step into a production that was already designed around another director's approach and begin shooting almost immediately. Crowther later portrayed the changeover as a painful emergency, while Kohner remembered Thompson as highly efficient and certain about the shots he wanted. The film was consequently shot entirely on location in Mexico beginning in March 1983, with the director's late arrival becoming one of the production's defining behind-the-scenes disruptions.
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AI concept artworkArchive Record · 1980s
The Director Fired Days Before Cameras Rolled in Mexico
The Evil That Men Do / 1980s
The 1984 Charles Bronson thriller nearly began under a different director and then underwent a last-minute production crisis. Fielder Cook was attached during the film's preparation, but according to screenwriter John M. Crowther, it became obvious after roughly a week of pre-production that Cook was not capable of handling the project. Cook was dismissed just days before filming was scheduled to begin in Guadalajara, Mexico. Producer Pancho Kohner and executive producer Lance Hool then brought in J. Lee Thompson, who had already directed Bronson in several films, including St. Ives, The White Buffalo, Caboblanco and 10 to Midnight. Thompson effectively had to step into a production that was already designed around another director's approach and begin shooting almost immediately. Crowther later portrayed the changeover as a painful emergency, while Kohner remembered Thompson as highly efficient and certain about the shots he wanted. The film was consequently shot entirely on location in Mexico beginning in March 1983, with the director's late arrival becoming one of the production's defining behind-the-scenes disruptions.
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