John Wayne as Frank?

[cigar joe]

yeah, all differences aside, wayne is the only guy i would even think of willingly replacing fonda with... the guy would have made an amazing frank.

Jimmy Stewart might have made an impression also

[titoli]

Katherine Hepburn?

[The Peacemaker]

I've always thought Wayne would have made a good Frank ( even though nobody could be better than Henry Fonda ) but he must have HATED Spaghetti Westerns. If John Wayne called High Noon un-American, can you imagine what he thought of SWs? Three reasons why it would've been IMPOSSIBLE to cast John Wayne as Frank are:

1) John Wayne would never be in a Spaghetti Western
2) He would never play a bad guy role
3) Everyone would've hated the movie and probably ban it in the United States

But, it's still an interesting thought!

[Groggy]

After watching "Major Dundee" I think Charlton Heston would've made a good Frank . . . I mean it wouldn't have had the impact of Fonda, but still.  Heston was made for Westerns and costume dramas, moreso than Biblical epics at least.

I don't think I could imagine Jimmy Stewart as Frank, I just can't.  I mean, as I've said a billion times over, the key to Fonda's performance is that he's playing Frank basically the same way he played, say, Wyatt Earp or Morg Hickman except he's evil.  Stewart was good in some of his darker roles ("Vertigo", "The Naked Spur") but I don't think I can see him as a child killer.

[Tucumcari Bound]

John Wayne would have been brilliant as Frank. John Wayne could indeed act and Sergio Leone would have brought the best out of Wayne while directing him. Yes, Henry Fonda was brilliant as the cruel Frank, but I think Wayne could have been just as brilliant. Just imagine seeing Wayne take out that whole family as we seen Henry Fonda do as Frank. It would have been even more SHOCKING. A casting move that would have been even more brilliant than Henry Fonda. It would have worked my friends.

Yes, Wayne hated SW's as I've read but it's fun thinking about this stuff.

[T.H.]

I don't think Wayne could have managed the subtleties that the role required. Frank was as introspective as they come, and I just don't see how the boisterous, brash Wayne could have managed with the intricate details that made Frank a great character: the walk, the smile, the way he picked up a glass, etc. If John Wayne was Frank, he couldn't be John Wayne, which defeats the purpose of the role altogether.

Just my opinion. I think Wayne was a very good actor, but nowhere near the level of Fonda.

[Tucumcari Bound]

I don't think Wayne could have managed the subtleties that the role required. Frank was as introspective as they come, and I just don't see how the boisterous, brash Wayne could have managed with the intricate details that made Frank a great character: the walk, the smile, the way he picked up a glass, etc. If John Wayne was Frank, he couldn't be John Wayne, which defeats the purpose of the role altogether.

Just my opinion. I think Wayne was a very good actor, but nowhere near the level of Fonda.

The thing about John Wayne is this...he had amazing charisma which many actors lack. His screen presense is arguably the best ever. He just had a way about him that's hard to explain. His popularity till this day explains it. That's why I hate it when people say he can't act. This is not true. He got away with being John Wayne because of his charisma and the way people were attracted to him. This made big money for Hollywood so most directors probably gave him a lot of freedom.

I believe John Wayne could have tackled the role of Frank very well. Like I've said before, if you take a highly talented director like Sergio Leone and brought these two talents together, it work magic. If John Wayne had the chance to work with Sergio, I think he would have listened to him and strayed away from the norm to create a memorable character. Yes, Henry Fonda is the more diverse actor of the two, I agree with you there Tuco, and he played Frank brilliantly, but forget about Fonda's performance for one sec. If Wayne was cast as this evil person, you'd be thinking the same things about Wayne's performance as we do Fonda's.

Of course, this is also my opinion. Just thought I'd dig into it alittle more. 

[Groggy]

I think Wayne might have done a great job as Frank. Maybe not as good as Fonda, but the sight of him killing a child would be the most traumatic experience in cinema history.

If Wayne had actually been offered the part, he might have considered it, but unlike Fonda he was very concerned about his image and while he played darker characters at points in his career, he never wanted to play a full-on villain. It would have been interesting to see how he and Sergio would have gotten on at any rate, I'm sure Wayne would at least respect Leone's love and knowledge of the Western genre.

[noodles_leone]

You guys may know that (i didn't even had the time to read the whole topic so sby my have post it befor me), but anyway:
In the Inside The Actor Studio with Clint Eastwood as guest, Clint says that Don Siegel, who was directing John Wayne in a movie, asked Wayne to shoot sby in the back. Wayne answered that it is not even thinkable. Siegel said "Clint Eastwood would have done it." and Wayne: "I don't care what that boy would have done; i'm not doing it".

I have never seen the movie, still, I seriously doubt that Wayne would have even thought to accept the part of Frank 
He would have been pretty interesting and very good by the way, even if Fonda is the perfect match for the part.

[Tucumcari Bound]

You guys may know that (i didn't even had the time to read the whole topic so sby my have post it befor me), but anyway:
In the Inside The Actor Studio with Clint Eastwood as guest, Clint says that Don Siegel, who was directing John Wayne in a movie, asked Wayne to shoot sby in the back. Wayne answered that it is not even thinkable. Siegel said "Clint Eastwood would have done it." and Wayne: "I don't care what that boy would have done; i'm not doing it".

I have never seen the movie, still, I seriously doubt that Wayne would have even thought to accept the part of Frank 
He would have been pretty interesting and very good by the way, even if Fonda is the perfect match for the part.

The film your referring to is The Shootist, John Wayne's last film which is a great one at that.

[noodles_leone]

thanks you Tuc!

[Tucumcari Bound]

thanks you Tuc!

No problem noodles!

[Jill]

Hm... I think he was good actor, but he played always the same type. He had very good roles - what I have seen: Red River, but as a person, I don't like him. It's a pity he hated SWs... perhaps for they are much betterd more artistic
than the most of his movies? He hated communists, strangers, also, he was a typical WASP in bad meaning...

But I would like to see him as a cold-blood murderer. 

[Groggy]

I'd hate Communists too if they tried to kill me or my family.

[Jill]

They tried to kill John Wayne or his family? 

Well, in my homeland was 40 years of "communism" (it was only "builded")... it wasn't good, but after 1960 it became soft. Life was easier and everyone had a job (that means not he had anything interesting to do). Today is here capitalism, but it doesn't work better...