Trivia / Under Fire

The Film:

• Acclaimed Flop: Despite getting good reviews from such critics as Roger Ebert and Pauline Kael, the movie made only $5,696,391 off a $9.5 million budget.
• California Doubling: Though it takes place in Chad (at the beginning) and Nicaragua, the film was shot entirely in Mexico.
• The Cast Show Off: Gene Hackman did his own singing and piano playing here.
• Playing Against Type: Ron Shelton (who rewrote the script - see What Could Have Been below) would later become known for writing and directing sports movies such as Bull Durham, White Men Can't Jump, and Tin Cup. This is a political thriller.
• Real-Life Relative: Holly Palance (daughter of Jack Palance), who was married to Roger Spottiswoode at the time, plays a reporter colleague of Alex, Claire and Russell.
• Those Two Actors: This is the first of three films Gene Hackman and Ed Harris did together (the others being The Firm and Absolute Power (1997)), and the only one of the three where they share a scene together.
• What Could Have Been: The original script by Clayton Frohman was set during The Vietnam War, but Ron Shelton rewrote it to update it to the Nicaraguan Civil War.
  • Treat Williams was originally cast as Russell.
  • Julie Christie turned down the role of Claire.

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