Highlights
- Ethan Hawke admitted that he didn’t always enjoy working with Robin Williams on the set of Dead Poets Society.
- Despite their differences, Hawke acknowledged that Williams had a positive impact on his career.
- Other cast members like Josh Charles had positive experiences with Williams.
Whether fans heard about Robin Williams‘ death on Conan O’Brien’s show or read about it in the media, the beloved actor and comedian’s passing was an incredibly tragic and upsetting moment. Williams was not only a major talent but also a kind and caring person. For example, when filming one of the biggest hits of his career, Williams supported the child actors of Mrs. Doubtfire and made sure that they were happy.
However, the behind-the-scenes story of the hit 1989 movie Dead Poets Society might have been a different situation. Ethan Hawke, one of the wealthy stars of the ’80s movie, has shared that he didn’t love working on the movie with Robin Williams. Here’s the truth about whether the other young actors felt the same way.
What Did Ethan Hawke Say About His Dead Poets Society Co-Star Robin Williams?
Robin Williams’s many fans would guess that it was fun for the young cast of Dead Poets Society to star in the movie alongside the legendary comedian.
However, Ethan Hawke was honest about what it was really like when he played Todd Anderson, the main character in the emotional movie. While Todd is in awe of the passionate and inspiring English teacher John Keating, played by Robin Williams, Hawke had some interesting things to say about working alongside the actor.
In 2021, The Daily Mail reported that Ethan Hawke spoke about Robin Williams during an appearance at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. The actor said, “I thought Robin hated me. He had a habit of making a ton of jokes on set. At 18, I found that incredibly irritating. He wouldn’t stop and I wouldn’t laugh at anything he did.”
As Hawke explained, he was 18 years old when making the movie, and it was one of the first films that he ever starred in. It would be a few years before he would become more of a celebrity thanks to his role in Reality Bites, the beloved coming-of-age comedy.
Hawke continued, “There was this scene in the film when he makes me spontaneously make up a poem in front of the class. He made this joke at the end of it, saying that he found me intimidating. I thought it was a joke. As I get older, I realize there is something intimidating about young people’s earnestness, their intensity. It is intimidating – to be the person they think you are. Robin was that for me.”
While the actor admitted that he found the Dead Poets Society set to be tough, Hawke ultimately saw Williams in a more positive light. He definitely has a lot of love and respect for the late actor.
Hawke also shared that Williams phoned an agent and said that he thought that Hawke was a young actor to watch. This phone conversation enabled Hawke to get an agent, which of course helped his career.
Since most people have had at least one teacher who made them see the world in a different, more compelling way, the movie is incredibly relatable. Keating wants his students to live life and not spend all of their time reading books, and he makes them see learning completely differently.
What Was Robin Williams Like To Work With Behind The Scenes On Dead Poets Society?
It’s interesting to hear about Ethan Hawke’s time on the Dead Poets Society set since starring alongside such a legend can definitely go one of two ways. While fans would expect a more experienced actor to be a mentor to younger actors, sometimes things go awry and actors struggle to get along. Did the other cast members say similar things about Robin Williams?
Josh Charles, who has had a long TV and movie career that included playing beloved lawyer Will Charles in The Good Wife, has said great things about Dead Poets Society. This was his second movie after 1988’s Hairspray. After the 1989 coming-of-age film was released, Charles starred in Don’t Tell Mom The Babysitter’s Dead and the Aaron Sorkin TV series Sports Night, which aired from 1998 to 2000.
In 2014, he told Entertainment Weekly that it was exciting to be in the same film as Williams. He said, “I got to work with Peter Weir and Robin Williams and make a film that has an iconic quality to it that people respond to again, and again, and again.”
After the comedian passed away, Charles spoke about Williams in a video for The Hollywood Reporter. He said that Williams “was the first bona fide star I’d ever interacted with.”
Charles also explained, “I was most struck by how kind he was and how nice he was to the 17-year-old, 18-year-old kids,” which is really sweet to hear. Charles said Williams “made great effort to be just one part of the ensemble.”
Robert Sean Leonard, whose character Neil Perry has a devastating character arc, never said that he had any conflict with Robin Williams on the movie’s set. In 2013, Leonard talked about Dead Poets Society with Backstage and began by saying that he felt that it was hard for him to give interviews.
Leonard said “I have no eloquence” before answering a question about whether he was cast in a lot of projects when the movie was over.
Leonard explained to Backstage, ‘The movie was famous; we weren’t. Or we were collectively famous: the boys from Dead Poets Society. But Robert Sean Leonard, the name, didn’t lift out of the movie.”
The other young cast members, such as Dylan Kussman and Gale Hansen, don’t seem to have said anything about working with Robin Williams.
While Ethan Hawke was honest about how he had a tough experience on the Dead Poets Society set, it sounds like starring in this movie was a special moment in time for the entire cast. Now that Williams is gone, it’s even more emotional to think about the film’s message of living life to the fullest every single day.
Source: NewsFinale
