Full Metal Jacket star Matthew Modine shares how an angry Val Kilmer helped him land his role in Stanley Kubrick’s iconic war movie.
Matthew Modine credits Val Kilmer for landing him a role in Stanley Kubrick Full Metal Jacket. Kubrick was already a legendary filmmaker when, in 1987, he tackled the vast subject of the Vietnam War. by Kubrick Full Metal Jacket went on to earn an Oscar nomination for its screenplay while grossing $120 million on a budget of $16.5-30 million.
Today of course Full Metal Jacket is remembered as an iconic war movie filled with indelible moments. Most memorable of all is the film’s extended boot camp sequence, featuring R. Lee Ermey’s unforgettable performance as rough drill instructor Hartman. The film is also known for its harrowing battle scenes, including a brutal sequence in which a group of soldiers are pinned down by a sniper. The film also boosted the careers of several young actors, notably Modine and especially Vincent D’Onofrio.
Modine was of course already known when he appeared in Full Metal Jacket after starring in the movie vision quest. But despite his name, Modine says he wasn’t really on Kubrick’s radar during Full Metal Jacket, until Modine took to it after a strange encounter with another young actor at a restaurant in Los Angeles. Recently appeared on Late Night with Seth MeyersModine recounted how Kilmer was partly responsible for landing him the role of Private Joker in Kubrick’s film:
I was in a restaurant in Los Angeles. … I was sitting with… David Alan Grier. … We were eating our pancakes, and there was a guy sitting over there. … It was Val Kilmer. And he was looking at me and saying obscene things to me. I said, “David, unless it’s an actor learning his lines or someone with Tourette, he’s definitely telling me to go ‘F’ myself.” And he looked over his shoulder. He said, “Oh, that’s Val Kilmer. He’s a really nice guy,” and he invited me. I said, “Hi. My name is Matthew.” “I know who you are. I’m sick of you, man.” …and I was on the run. You know, actors, once in a while we get a really good run, and I had done a bunch of movies. And he said, “Now you’re doing the Kubrick movie, ‘Full Metal Jacket.’” I said, “You don’t have to worry about that. I’m not doing ‘Full Metal Jacket.’ …And I ran out and I called my agent. I said, ‘This actor, Val Kilmer, just said I was doing the Kubrick movie,’ and he said, ‘I don’t I don’t know.” I said, “Me neither.” But I know [Kubrick] did his movies with Warner Bros., and I had just done “Vision Quest.” … I said, “Let’s just send him some clips.” And we did, and then a month later I got the script in the mail. “Hi. My name is Stanley Kubrick. I’m a director. And I wonder if you would be interested in being in my film. … So I have to say, ‘Thank you, Val Kilmer!’
Kilmer, of course, got his own 80s career boost from a military-themed film when he starred alongside Tom Cruise in Superior gun. And recently, Kilmer was able to see his Superior gun role, reprising Ice Man in the blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick. Modine, for his part, is also doing well right now, as he can currently be seen playing the role of Dr. Brenner in Netflix’s massive sci-fi series. stranger things.
Modine obviously had a great career filled with memorable roles. But nothing in his filmography is as iconic as his performance as Private Joker in Full Metal Jacket. Modine’s character is indeed a major focus of this film, as it follows him from boot camp to his time in Vietnam as a conflict reporter for a military magazine. stars and stripes. Most memorable of all, of course, is the opening sequence in which Joker befriends D’Onofrio’s hapless Private Pyle and is there for Pyle’s tragic and brutal downfall. Now it looks like Modine might have missed out on the whole experience of being in Full Metal Jacket if Kilmer hadn’t been irritated at his success, and quite willing to show his anger in a public place. Modine, however, seems very grateful that Kilmer was in such a bad mood that day.
Source: Late Night with Seth Meyers
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