Michael Caine could have given up his acting profession in 1992. A look back at a difficult moment in the career of the now retired legend.
Michael Caine’s career recently ended. The actor confirmed last year that he was moving away from film sets at the age of 90. However, there was a moment during his career when he almost left the profession prematurely, a moment of despair which led him to agree to make a film of which he is not at all proud, putting Starring Steven Seagal.
It was in 2010, in the columns of the Daily Mail, that the actor revealed that in 1992, it had occurred to him to retire. He was then 58 years old and offers were starting to come in for roles that didn’t seem interesting to him. He himself describes this period of his life as “the twilight zone”, where “the spotlight of cinematic stardom was fading and everything seemed bleak.”
“Soon the scripts started to dry up completely – even the bad ones – and if there’s one thing worse than being offered bad scripts, it’s not being offered any at all.did he declare. “The danger, of course, is that the wait for a decent movie makes you desperate, and I was so desperate that I agreed to a movie in Alaska with Steven Seagal, the martial arts expert. The movie was called On Deadly Ground [Terrain miné en français] and the title turned out to be appropriate.”
He continued : “While it was great working with Steven and the rest of the crew, I had broken one of the cardinal rules of bad movies: If you’re going to make a bad movie, at least make it in a good location. There I was, making a film where the work froze my brain and the time froze my ass. I vowed to never work in a difficult place again.”
Warner Bros. Minefield (1994)
In the movie Steven Seagal played Forrest Taft, an expert firefighter who chooses to fight against the environmental destruction caused by his ruthless former employer (Michael Caine). Released in 1994, the feature film garnered negative reviews and grossed only $78.1 million worldwide against a production budget of $50 million.
Another false note
Things didn’t improve when he later agreed to reprise the role of his legendary Harry Palmer character in two back-to-back TV movies: Bullet to Beijing and Midnight in St Petersburg in 1995 and 1996. Although Michael Caine he himself said that this character was one of his favorites, everything did not turn out as he hoped: “It was the worst professional experience of my career.”
Showtime
Midnight in St Petersburg (1996)
The fact that two bodyguards had to follow him because the production was afraid of the local mafia in St. Petersburg didn’t help either and made the whole thing even more unbearable.
“The filming itself was a joke. The final blow came when we were filming at the Lenfilm studio. I wanted to go to the toilet and they told me where to go. I could smell them from 50 yards away and they were the dirtiest toilets I have ever seen. I went out and relieved myself against the studio wall, which several other men had already done.”
“So this is where my career ended, I told myself: in the toilet”, he concluded.
Jack Nicholson to the rescue
Fortunately, everything changed upon his return to the United States thanks to an old friend, one Jack Nicholson, who introduced himself to him alongside director Bob Rafelson with a film called Blood and Wine (1996) which they were going to shoot in Miami.
“The combination of the three was appealing and I decided to give one last try at becoming a film actor. It was the best decision I ever made. Jack is a wonderful actor who takes life gently and I owe him for giving me confidence in this often unpleasant business. I know he’s not everyone’s idea of a fairy godmother, but he is to me.”
If Michael Caine admits that the film was not a commercial success, he adds that it was a success for him: “It was the start of an exciting new phase in my life. I was definitely on my way back!”
Miramax Films
God’s Work, the Devil’s Part (1999)
The actor will then play in God’s Work, the Devil’s Part, the dramatic comedy with Tobey Maguire and Charlize Theron for which he will be nominated for an Oscar for best supporting actor in 1999.
“I had learned my lesson with my previous Oscar, in 1987, when I won for Hannah and Her Sisters but didn’t attend, and this time I made sure I was there. And it’s a good thing I did because I got a long standing ovation when I won.”
The rest you know: numerous collaborations with Christopher Nolan (The Prestige, The Dark Knight trilogy, Inception, Interstellar, Tenet…), but also The Sons of Man, Elusive, Kingsman. All is said.