Not long before his role inStagecoach, John Wayne was rejected for the lead role inThe Plainsman,a lesser-known entry into the Western genre.John Wayne was the face of Western movies for decades, starring in some of the genre’s all-time best films, includingRed RiverandThe Searchers. Wayne earned his reputation as the top Western star of the time, and continues to be remembered as one of the medium’s greatest icons.
Given his star power, it’s no surprise that Wayne was usually high on the list of options for the main character when a major Western movie was going into production. However, getting to this point took a great deal of time, as Wayne went a full decade into his career before he was able to really make a name for himself. That finally happened in 1939 when he starred asthe Ringo Kid in John Ford’sStagecoach. But it might have happened if a different critically-acclaimed director had accepted Wayne’s request for a leading part.
John Wayne Wanted To Star In The Plainsman
He Lost The Part To Gary Cooper
Directed by Cecil B. DeMille,The Plainsmanwas a 1936 Western that starred Gary Cooper as real-life lawman Wild Bill Hickok. The Paramount film featured a slew of historical figures associated with the American Wild West, including Calamity Jane and William “Buffalo Bill” Cody. The movie performed well at the box office, and went over well critically as well, with its 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes being a testament to its reputation. It’s commonly regarded as one ofGary Cooper’s best Westerns, but if John Wayne had his way, that never would have been the case.Wayne made a push to get the role of Hickok ahead of Cooper’s casting.
According to Michael Munn’s biography of the actor,John Wayne: The Man Behind the Myth, the actor sought the role of Wild Bill Hickok when he heard that Cecil B. DeMille was attached to the project. DeMille was a well-respected director in Hollywood at the time, even though this was long before his masterpiece,The Ten Commandments. Munn’s book recounts Wayne explaining that he had asked for a chance to get the role, and so his agent arranged for him to meet with DeMille to discuss the part. But the meeting ultimately went nowhere, with DeMille mentioning his role inThe Big Trail, and then saying that “a lot of water had passed under the bridge” since the movie.
Cecil B. DeMille did make a movie with John Wayne, but it was notThe Plainsman. Wayne co-starred in DeMille’s sea-faring adventure epic,Reap the Wild Wind, alongside Paulette Goddard and Ray Milland in 1942.
John Wayne summed up CeMille’s decision not to cast him, noting, “To him, I was now just a minor star of B-movie Westerns.” In a sense, DeMille wasn’t wrong if this was indeed his perception of Wayne’s situation;starring in 1930’sThe Big Trailwas a huge career move for Wayne, but nothing he made after that - untilStagecoach- measured up to it. When Wayne was lobbying for the starring role inThe Plainsman, he hadn’t been involved in a major production in six years.
John Wayne Almost Lost His Breakout Role To Gary Cooper Too
John Wayne finally escaped his reputation as a Western B-movie star when he starred inStagecoach. Interestingly, he ran the risk of losing this role to Gary Cooper as well. Munn wrote in his book that when John Ford was putting together the cast forStagecoach, the director faced some opposition when it came to Wayne playing the Ringo Kid. Presumably because of his recent history,Stagecoachproducer Walter Wanger preferred Gary Cooper and Marlene Dietrich for the male and female leads.
Later, when Wayne had surpassed Cooper in star power, he turned down the part of Will Kane inHigh Noon, culminating in Cooper landing the most celebrated role of his career.
Admittedly, Wanger’s position was understandable, considering that Cooper was a bigger star, and therefore a more reliable option, just as the situation was withThe Plainsman. But Ford had worked with Wayne before onThe Big Trialand likely had reason to be confident in the actor’s abilities. As Munn explained inJohn Wayne: The Man Behind the Myth, John Ford resisted calls for Wayne to be removed from the project and forged ahead. Clearly, he made the right decision.
