Lawrence of Arabia actors Peter O’Toole and Omar Sharif were reunited a few years later on The Night of the Generals, only because they were contractually obligated to do so. But how did they end up in this situation?
The Night of the Generals could be summed up as a “war thriller”. Directed by Anatole Litvak, it once again brings together actors Peter O’Toole and Omar Sharif four years after their masterpiece Lawrence of Arabia (1962).
The story takes place during World War II. A prostitute is brutally murdered in Warsaw, and it is the German major Grau (Sharif) who is in charge of the investigation. The first elements lead him on the trail of three German generals. But soon, Grau is sent to Paris and a plot against Hitler is brewing…
During the year 1960, the producer Sam Spiegel prepares a film of an impressive scale, supposed to be shot during an entire year: lawrence of arabia. Because he had financed Sur les quais, he asked Marlon Brando to play the title role. The latter refuses, and it is then Albert Finney who is considered.
While pre-production is progressing well, the actor also refuses, because Spiegel asks him to sign a contract binding him to him for seven years! An agreement accepted by Peter O’Toole and Omar Sharif, allowing them to obtain roles, Oscar nominations, and fame.
Columbia Pictures Peter O’Toole discovering his salary on The Night of the Generals
Why this reminder around Lawrence of Arabia? Well because it is these same seven-year contracts that force the two actors to work again for Spiegel and to accept The Night of the Generals, for cheap!
Indeed, at the time when he was recruited for Lawrence of Arabia, Omar Sharif essentially turned romances in Egypt which earned him little international recognition and O’Toole released small roles in the Disney film The Abduction of David Balfour and The Devil’s Teeth, as well as a supporting role in The Day the Bank of England was Robbed.
Suffice to say that they are unknown to the general public, and their salary for Lawrence of Arabia remains limited. Except that the contract that binds them for 7 years to Spiegel does not provide for a financial revaluation. This means that the producer can once again bring them together on screen for a pittance, even though they have become world stars!
Columbia Pictures
From left to right: Donald Pleasance, Peter O’Toole, Charles Gray and Omar Sharif
Breaking a contract can be very complicated, with sums to be paid in compensation, and the two actors therefore resign themselves to filming The Night of the Generals, “against my political and moral ideas” even Sharif will say.
According to the legend, actor Donald Pleasence, who plays General Kahlenberge, in the fourth position in the credits, would have received twice the combined salaries of Sharif and O’Toole. As for Christopher Plummer (Rommel in the film) he would have been paid with a Rolls-Royce!
Columbia Pictures
Omar Sharif
Although turning the film backwards and for much less than they could have been entitled to claim, the two main actors deliver excellent performances in The Night of the Generals. They would meet again years later on The Rainbow Thief (1990), Gulliver’s Travels (1996), and Esther, Queen of Persia (2006).
More info: the character of General Claus von Stauffenberg, here played by the Frenchman Gérard Buhr, will be interpreted years later, at a time when he was still only a colonel, by Tom Cruise in Walkyrie (2008).