Dear Lloyd,
As a producer, how many chances should you give an actor who is unbelievably talented, but also unbelievably unreliable (at best) or a complete psycho (at worst), before you fire them?
Help,
Nervous in Naples
Dear Nervous,
Depending on the situation, sometimes I get rid of talented, dedicated people because they disagree with me and sometimes I get rid of talented, dedicated people because I am an idiot. This happened to Vincent D’Onofrio during The Toxic Avenger. I sometimes get rid of people even before they have become a major problem; sometimes I keep someone who should have gone a long time ago.
The best way to avoid a bad situation entirely is to weed out the troublemakers during the casting process. I make auditions so horrible that anyone who makes it through without wanting to kill themselves (or me) has a good chance of making it through the shoot, which is equally as horrible.
I always go with the less-talented-but-more-reliable-and-loyal actor over the super-talented diva. However, sometimes bad apples do slip through. In these cases, I say: if it isn’t ruining the film, keep Wacky around until you can fire him in front of everyone and make an example out of him. Of course, then he
may want to come back and make an example out of you with his brass knuckles, so proceed with caution!
Good luck! And please review this book on Amazon while you’re in that full-body cast. Thanks!
xoxo,
Lloyd