Tombstone was a film so successful that it managed to revitalize the western genre when it needed a significant boost of energy. Although subversive, revisionist westerns like Dances With Wolves and Unforgiven had both won the Academy Award for Best Picture, there were not very many films in the genre that harkened back to the populist escapism found within the “Golden Age of Hollywood.” Tombstone featured an incredible cast of some of the greatest living actors, but the film was anchored by the delightful friendship between Wyatt Earp (Kurt Russell) and Doc Holliday (Val Kilmer). While Kilmer’s performance is cited as being one of his best, Willem Dafoe was almost cast as Doc Holliday in Tombstone.
Val Kilmer Almost Didn’t Play Doc Holliday
Casting Holliday was of the utmost importance in Tombstone, as he is a historical figure who had been depicted on screen several times before in such classics as My Darling Clementine, Hour of the Gun, and Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. While Earp is intended to be the embodiment of heroism and law enforcement, Holliday is a more complex character who decides to team up with other lawmen in order to defeat the outlaw “Curly” Bill Brocius (Powers Boothe). Despite the enthusiasm from both Russell and director George P. Cosmatos, Dafoe was turned down because he was not a big enough star. Comparatively, Kilmer was coming off the success of a series of hits like Real Genius, The Doors, and Top Gun, and was considered to be far more bankable as a leading man. Dafoe had drawn acclaim for his disturbing roles in Light Sleeper and Wild at Heart, so Buena Vista Pictures may have been concerned about him dragging down the tone of Tombstone.
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Kilmer’s casting was significant to the tone of the film, as it attempted to be a throwback to classical westerns like High Noon and Rio Bravo. The film certainly had its shocking moments, but the sense of humor that Kilmer added made Tombstone far more entertaining than it would have been otherwise. The production of Tombstone was infamously troubled, so it is safe to assume that Kilmer had some creative control over the depiction of Holliday. Had he lost the role to Dafoe, it would have significantly impacted his career; Kilmer followed up Tombstone with a brief series of hits, including True Romance, Heat, and Batman Forever. Dafoe never dropped out of the public eye, but he certainly retained his status as a character actor, and has rarely been offered leading parts.
Would Willem Dafoe Have Improved ‘Tombstone?’
Dafoe is an excellent actor who is far more versatile than he is given credit for, and Tombstone would have given him the opportunity to prove that he can do non-villainous roles. As iconic as his terrifying performances in The Lighthouse and Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy are, Dafoe has proven in several instances that he can play the embodiment of heroism. He added a deep level of humanity with his performance as Jesus of Nazareth in The Last Temptation of Christ, and played the “good” sergeant in Oliver Stone’s powerful Vietnam War drama Platoon. Dafoe certainly would have added a darker tone to Tombstone, but he was not entirely averse to doing comedy; he was able to play a more eccentric character in the cult classic Streets of Fire, and subsequently took on many more comedic roles in several films directed by Wes Anderson.
Dafoe may have been a more authentic choice to play Holliday, who in real life was a gambler, gunfighter, and hooligan who just barely chose the side of good. Kilmer is certainly great at chewing the scenery and showcasing Holliday’s intelligence, but he was never completely believable as a grizzled criminal. That being said, it is great that Kilmer took on the role, as his diagnosis with throat cancer would make it more difficult to act within the following decades. Dafoe has never failed to find work, but it would be great if he was able to come full circle and appear in a new western at some point in the near future. It’s a genre he would suit very well.
Tombstone is streaming on Hulu in the United States.
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