Josh Brolin Almost Quit THE DOG STARS After One Day Because Ridley Scott “Bugged Me Out”
Josh Brolin has worked with some of the biggest filmmakers in Hollywood, but even he found himself questioning everything after the first day of filming The Dog Stars.
In fact, the actor was so thrown off by Ridley Scott's approach that he called his agent and tried to leave the movie before production had really gotten underway.
Thankfully, cooler heads prevailed because Brolin stuck around, figured out Scott's process, and now the post-apocalyptic film is set to hit theaters on August 28.
Speaking with Empire, Brolin opened up about the experience, explaining that Scott's directing style caught him completely off guard.
“Ridley was talking a lot of stories and not really rehearsing, and it bugged me out, and I got really scared. I went back, called my agent and said, ‘I want out. Something’s really wrong, and I’ve got to get the f*ck out of here.'”
That wasn't just a moment of frustration. Brolin genuinely believed the production wasn't going to work. He continued:
“Luckily my agent is a close friend and he said, ‘Rest for a day.’ I was like, ‘No, man, I know what the f*ck you’re doing. It’s not one of those day-things.’ And I was right.”
Even though Brolin had previously worked with Scott on American Gangster back in 2007, the filmmaker's approach on The Dog Stars was completely different. Scott relied on a fast-paced, multi-camera shooting style that left the actor struggling to understand what the director was aiming for.
Everything changed once Scott showed him footage from the day's work. Brolin recalled: “[Ridley] goes, ‘Come here,’ and he brought me into his trailer, and played the scene we had just finished.
“It was a really good, very dynamic scene between me and Jacob, and he goes, ‘Okay?’ I go, ‘Okay,’ and then I started to feed off that.”
From that point on, things clicked. Once Brolin saw how Scott was assembling the performances and camera coverage, he was able to settle into the rhythm of the production instead of fighting against it.
Based on Peter Heller's acclaimed novel, The Dog Stars stars Jacob Elordi as a pilot trying to survive in a post-pandemic America alongside his loyal dog. Living in an unforgiving wilderness, he holds onto hope after picking up a mysterious radio transmission that hints other survivors may still be out there.
The screenplay comes from Mark L. Smith, the writer of The Revenant, and the cast also includes Margaret Qualley, Guy Pearce, Benedict Wong, and Brolin as the ex-Marine Bangley.
It's pretty wild to think that Brolin almost walked away after a single day on set. Fortunately, Scott's new unconventional style of directing eventually won him over, and now we'll get to see the finished result when The Dog Stars arrives in theaters on August 28.