When The French Connection came out in 1971, it captivated audiences and reshaped the crime thriller genre. The film based on real-life events from one of the biggest drug busts in American history was nominated for five Academy Awards and featured two powerhouse performances by Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider. Since then, the movie has become one of the most celebrated films of all time. The gritty visual style, gripping cat-and-mouse game and suspenseful chase sequences have influenced future films and made it a staple of cinematic history. However, behind the scenes of this iconic movie was a whole lot of drama. From studio rejection to casting drama, director William Friedkin had to fight to make this movie happen. In a recent interview with NBC News, Friedkin spoke about his no-holds-barred production and the film’s lasting legacy.
He also revealed some interesting facts about the making of the movie. Some of them may surprise you.
The film was inspired by the real-life heroin bust that was led by NYPD detectives Eddie “Popeye” Egan and Sonny Grosso in the early 1960s. The story began when the detectives spotted suspected drug dealers in a Copacabana nightclub and then tracked them down. After their arrests, they seized tons of heroin and made what is considered one of the largest drug busts in history.
For the movie, Friedkin wanted to recreate the excitement of the raids on screen. He brought in stunt driver Bill Hickman, who had previously performed the famous car chase sequence in Bullitt. During the filming of the scene, Hickman drove 26 blocks under the Stillwell Avenue L tracks and reached speeds up to 90 mph.
Unlike some other modern films that use CGI to simulate action,The french connection left over relied heavily on actual footage and photographs from the real-life raids. This gave the film a documentary feel and helped it achieve its realistic look. Moreover, the movie’s dialogue was mostly improvised based on the situation in each scene. This included the famous line, “Did you ever pick your feet up in Poughkeepsie?” According to Friedkin, this was a term that Egan often used as a non-sequitor during interrogations.
One of the most surprising facts about the making of The French Connection is that Friedkin almost changed the movie’s title. Originally, the film was going to be called Doyle and Popeye. After this, the studio pressured Friedkin to change the title, he told the New York Times in an article.
The final result was an Academy Award winning film that was nominated for seven other Oscars, including Best Picture. It won four of those, and Friedkin won the award for Best Director. It is considered one of the greatest existential cop films and turned Hackman into a major star.
The film’s controversial scene that has recently been censored is a conversation between characters Popeye Doyle and Buddy “Cloudy” Russo. During the exchange, a racial slur was said. This has angered fans of the classic movie and sparked controversy on social media.
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