Making 'Misery': Kathy Bates, Rob Reiner reveal the on-set tension was real
Rob Reiner’s 1990 film version of the Stephen King novel Misery is a masterclass in sustained tension, unfolding almost entirely in a remote Colorado cabin where Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates) alternately cares for and terrorizes her favorite author, Paul Sheldon (James Caan). According to both the director and his leading lady, the mood on set was often tense as well. In separate interviews with Yahoo Entertainment, Reiner and Bates recalled experiencing friction with Caan while making the film. “Jimmy Caan is very instinctive and he doesn’t like rehearsal,” Reiner explains. “[Kathy] is a stage-trained actress who likes lots of rehearsal. We tried to strike a balance ... but it was not simpatico a lot of the time.”
Bates, who won an Oscar for her breakthrough big-screen performance, backs up that account. “It really frustrated me,” she admits about their contrasting attitude toward rehearsal. “I think we were butting heads from the very beginning.” There was one moment in particular where where Caan’s way of working interrupted her own process. “I remember being on set and I was doing a big speech. I kept hearing this voice and Jimmy was on the telephone ... making all this noise. I got so frustrated working with him.” To his credit, Reiner found a way to use that natural tension between his stars to the film’s advantage. “Rob gave us this wonderful direction,” Bates says. “You guys as characters are coming to this with opposite motives and opposite perceptions, so it’s OK if you’re not clicking.”
Fortunately, Reiner and Bates clicked right away. The director had already seen Bates perform on stage several times, and knew mere moments into their first meeting that he had found his Annie. “She came in to read for me ... and she had a whole scene prepared. After the first line, I was like ‘You don’t have to read; I know you’re great — you have the part.’ And she said, ‘Really? Can I tell my mother?’” Once again, their stories line up. “He gave me the part on the spot, and I said to him, ‘Can I call my mother?’” Bates recalls, laughing. “It was a big deal for me!”
| by Anonymous | reply 19 | November 2, 2019 2:04 AM
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I’m sure none of the tension had anything to do with James seeming like one of the biggest assholes.
| by Anonymous | reply 2 | November 1, 2019 4:52 AM
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Why wasn't M offered the role? She is horrifying enough no? Why'd they go with an unknown?
| by Anonymous | reply 3 | November 1, 2019 7:01 AM
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Whatever Happened to James Caan?
| by Anonymous | reply 4 | November 1, 2019 7:09 AM
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Wasn’t Caan way down the list of actors Reiner wanted? I thought I remembered reading the part was offered to at least half a dozen top actors of the time before they had to settle for Caan.
| by Anonymous | reply 6 | November 1, 2019 6:45 PM
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Meryl Streep and William Hurt were the same in ONE TRUE THING. She likes to do minimal takes, Hurt likes rehearsal and feeling his way in.
| by Anonymous | reply 7 | November 1, 2019 6:52 PM
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Funny you should ask, r1....
| by Anonymous | reply 8 | November 1, 2019 6:56 PM
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Yeah, Caan was already washed up when he did Misery. Gene Hackman would have been a great choice.
| by Anonymous | reply 9 | November 1, 2019 6:58 PM
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James Caan was mob connected. And someone apparently fell out of his high rise apt window. But he had nothing to do with it. Allegedly. He's mean and volatile. Not special enuf for directors and producers to want to take a chance on anymore. Pretty one note.
| by Anonymous | reply 10 | November 1, 2019 7:02 PM
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If you want to know how much of an asshole James Caan is, just ask his son - Scott.
Rumor is that Scott is gay, and James threatened both Scott and his boyfriend, if they ever took it public.
That's why Scott is still in the closet.
I think I also heard that James beat the crap out of Scott, when he found out he was gay.
| by Anonymous | reply 11 | November 1, 2019 7:44 PM
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James Caan wouldn't have fucked with Kathy, had she looked like this, during Misery...
| by Anonymous | reply 12 | November 1, 2019 7:55 PM
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Scott Caan is very sexy, but I heard that he can be an asshole, too.
Like father, like son.
| by Anonymous | reply 13 | November 1, 2019 7:56 PM
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I thought when there was talk of Scott being gay, James came clean about a homosexual relationship he himself had had for over a year or so back when was younger.
| by Anonymous | reply 14 | November 1, 2019 9:24 PM
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Proving themselves to be relevant, the media watchdog group GLAAD has successfully petitioned actor Scott Caan to apologize for calling a pesky paparazzo a “faggot”.
TMZ caught the actor’s tacky rant yesterday, when Caan said,
[quote] I saw you shooting me while I was eating a cheeseburger. Fucking jack-off. I’ll give you a thousand dollars to come fight me, how about that? $2000. $2500. Ten grand if you’ll fight me. Get a real job, you f*****.
Though GLAAD president Neil Giuliano sympathized with Caan’s plight, he and his were deeply offended by his “dehumanizing remarks”. As if paparazzi are human!
Fearing the gay wrath, Caan readily agreed to issue his personal apologies through his personal publicist:
[quote] I am sorry for using such a derogatory word. I was being harassed by a paparazzi and, unfortunately, the word slipped out. I don’t ever condone the use of that word and I deeply apologize to anyone whom I may have offended.
Yes, but did you apologize to the poor, defenseless paparazzo?
| by Anonymous | reply 15 | November 1, 2019 9:30 PM
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JAMES CAAN'S SON JAILED AFTER BAR FIGHT
Tribune News ServicesCHICAGO TRIBUNE
James Caan's 23-year-old son was jailed Wednesday for allegedly knocking a man out at a bar after the man danced with his date. Scott Caan was arrested for investigation of assault and held on $20,000 bail.
James Alleyna, 28, was punched several times and lost consciousness at a West Hollywood bar, sheriff's Deputy Angie Prewett said. Alleyna was treated by paramedics.
| by Anonymous | reply 16 | November 1, 2019 9:31 PM
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Datalounge actually had a Scott Caan thread a while back...
| by Anonymous | reply 17 | November 1, 2019 9:32 PM
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[quote] Is Scott caan gay?
Yes, he is, in fact gay. He was arrested at Firehouse, a gay bar in West Hollywood in 1998, when a man asked his date to dance. Caan reportedly yelled, "This is my lover. What are you doing?"
A fight ensued, and Scott and his date fled the scene. They were later arrested. Though the gender of his date was not published, the name of Caan's "date" was Ross Porterfield.
| by Anonymous | reply 18 | November 1, 2019 9:34 PM
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^ 1998? How old is he? 70?
| by Anonymous | reply 19 | November 2, 2019 2:04 AM
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