Lightyear’s James Brolin on James Bond and Westworld
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Back in 1973, before he wrote Jurassic Park, Michael Crichton penned and directed the Westworld movie. The storyline saw guests visiting an immersive Wild West theme park with lifelike robots who begin to malfunction. The King and I star Yul Brynner was cast as the main android The Gunslinger, reluctantly agreeing to the role for $75,000 as he was in desperate need of money.
Yul’s co-stars Richard Benjamin and James Brolin were cast as Peter Martin and John Blane less than 48 hours before the 30 day shoot began.
Almost 50 years since Westworld first hit cinemas and Josh Brolin’s father has shared his memories of working with the Hollywood legend, who died in 1985.
Speaking exclusively with Express.co.uk to promote Pixar’s Lightyear, the 82-year-old pointed out how his co-star had been a trapeze acrobat in the circus back in Europe during the 1930s. Brolin said: “He fell from up high and broke his back and they said he would never walk again.”
As a result, the pre-fame Yul developed a drug dependency to deal with the terrible spinal pain, which he was later treated for. Interestingly, this would have an impact on his acting.
His Westworld co-star said: “When I met him he always wore black and many times a red wide patent belt against black and bright red boots. Of course, he never let his posture down because his back always hurt. He never let down, he was always Yul. He was always what he looked like in that film. An interesting guy!”
During filming on Westworld, both actors sustained injuries with a piece of wadding from a blank cartridge striking Yul in the eye.
This scratched his cornea and made him unable to wear his light-reflecting contacts without his eye going red. As a result, the filming schedule had to be shifted so he could heal.
As for Brolin, in the scene where he’s bitten by a rattlesnake, the teeth of its lower jaw managed to get through to his arm despite him wearing leather and cotton padding.
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Brynner was just 65 when he died of lung cancer on October 10, 1985. Just before his death, he filmed an anti-smoking campaign with the help of the American Cancer Society.
The public service announcement was broadcast shortly after he died, in which he said: “Now that I’m gone, I tell you: Don’t smoke. Whatever you do, just don’t smoke. If I could take back that smoking, we wouldn’t be talking about any cancer. I’m convinced of that.”
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