MIDNIGHT RUN was released 35 years ago today. One of the best buddy comedies to come out of the 80s, its behind the scenes story was a cross-country thrill ride
A THREAD
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Writer George Gallo was inspired to write a buddy movie based on the dynamic of his parents. He said “my father was very emotional whereas my mother was far more calculating. She would let him talk and lead him down alleys and then strike like a cat."
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Gallo happily teamed up with director Martin Brest for script re-writes, he said “I have too many ideas and Marty helped rein me in to stay focused on the main story. This has helped me a great deal since my collaboration with him.”
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According to Gallo, the success of the film was down to the central relationship between Jack and The Duke, saying that it was a love story in many ways.
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Charles Grodin gave a simplistic summary of the plot of the film, he said “the story basically is a guy chases another guy & a third guy chases the two guys. And then a whole lot of other people chase all of the guys.” Grodin also said it was the best script he’d ever read.
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Both De Niro and Grodin loved working with director Martin Brest, but Yaphett Kotto, who played FBI agent Alonzo Mosely, hated it. He referred to him as “Herr Director” because of the number of takes he insisted on.
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Kotto said “Midnight Run was practically the most difficult movie I ever made; I was shocked when it came off so funny. It sure wasn't funny making it.” He also noted that Brest stopped eating during filming and began to look like something from a concentration camp.
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After filming The Untouchables, De Niro was looking for a lighter role, and was actually signed on for the role of Josh Baskin in Big. He later pulled out because the studio wouldn’t match his wage demands and the role went to Tom Hanks.
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He signed on for the role of Jack Walsh, but that wasn’t before a whole host of big names were considered including Michael Keaton, Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman and Charles Bronson, who was 67 at the time!
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Ever the method man, De Niro spent time with bounty hunters, worked with the LA & Chicago police and befriended a homicide detective who gave him daily updates about the L.A. murder rate.
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De Niro got so good at picking locks, that some frames from the opening scene had to be removed for the UK release because the BBFC didn’t want to give potential cat burglars any research material.
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Paramount had the rights to the film originally and were pushing for a big name to star alongside De Niro. They actually wanted to change the gender of The Duke and had singing sensation Cher lined up for the role to generate some sexual tension between the two leads.
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Brest said no to this, so Paramount gave him Robin Williams as an option. Williams was interested and agreed to test for the role but by this point, Brest had tested Charles Grodin and loved the way he worked alongside De Niro.
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Paramount weren’t happy so dropped out and sold the rights to Universal. Casey Silver, a Universal executive, had worked with Brest on Beverly Hills Cop so was happy to go with his casting choices.
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Other names talked about for the role of The Duke were Chevy Chase, Bruce Willis, Albert Brooks and Bill Murray.
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Charles Grodin’s approach to his character was simpler than De Niro’s. His prep work comprised of a 10-minute phone call with his business manager to ask about the logistics of embezzling millions of dollars.
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De Niro said that a lot of the film’s success was down to Grodin. After he passed away in 2021, De Niro said of his co-star “Chuck was as good a person as he was an actor, Midnight Run was a great project to work on, & Chuck made it an even better one. He will be missed.”
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For the role of mob boss Jimmy Serrano, Martin Brest turned to policeman turned actor Dennis Farina. The reason that we only see Serrano in Vegas is that Farina was shooting the TV show Crime Story in the city.
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There were three Johns in the frame to play bungling bounty hunter Marvin Dorfler. John Candy, John Goodman, and John Ashton. Brest liked what he saw with Ashton in Beverly Hills Cop and brought him on board for the role of Marvin.
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Breast gave Joe Pantoliano the option to play either Moron number 1 or 2, or the role of bail bondsman Eddie Moscone. He initially wanted the role of The Duke, which Brest immediately rejected, so he opted for Moscone.
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Legendary composer Danny Elfman provided the music for Midnight Run. He said "We used a small contemporary ensemble, which was quite a change, as I'd been accustomed to using large orchestras. For me that's like combining two worlds that I had always kept separate."
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The moment where The Duke falls off the cliff in the scene below was shot in Salt River Canyon in Arizona. The shots of The Duke and Jack in the water together were shot in New Zealand. The reason for that is the water was too cold in Arizona!
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Filming the scene in Flagstaff, Arizona foiled an actual crime. Around 10 police cars were used for the scene which passed a coffee shop where there was a kidnapping in process. The kidnappers got freaked by the police cars, and fled the scene.
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The dialogue in the boxcar scene was mostly improvised. Brest told Grodin that he had to do whatever was necessary to make De Niro laugh. Grodin said “We knew it had to end with De Niro revealing something personal about himself.”
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Grodin had written down about 15 lines he thought might get a reaction. Brest told Grodin “I love you, you’ve gotta find a way.” Grodin nailed it on his second attempt.
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Originally Marvin wasn’t going to feature in the Vegas showdown scene. In the first drafts of the script, he gets killed when Moron Number 2 knocks him out. Brest thought it would add more drama and suspense with him in this scene.
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Martin Brest is the guy behind the desk at the airport when he asks if Marvin wants a smoking or non-smoking seat. Brest had a similar role in the final scene of Beverly Hills Cop.
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At the Golden Globes that year, De Niro was nominated for Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical. He lost out to Tom Hanks…in Big.
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Going under the radar, there are three sequels to Midnight Run. All TV movies, all released in 1994: Another Midnight Run, Midnight Runaround and Midnight Run For Your Life. None of the original cast members returned for the sequels.
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In their 30-year retrospective of the film, Rolling Stone called Midnight Run the "Casablanca of Buddy Comedies." To finish off, here’s the glorious final moments between Walsh and The Duke.
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