Back in 1960, Yul Brynner starred within the iconic Western remake of Seven Samurai, The Magnificent Seven, which is on BBC Two this afternoon.

The King and I star had a serious say in casting choices and pushed for Steve McQueen.

However, he would later remorse this as their relationship on set plummeted disastrously.

Newspapers started reporting of feuding on The Magnificent Seven set between McQueen and Brynner, so the latter issued the press assertion: “I never feud with actors. I feud with studios.”

But nothing might be farther from the reality.

As was the case in different motion pictures, The Great Escape star was irritated by what number of traces he had, which had been simply seven within the authentic script. In response, he went out of his approach to upstage Brynner, drawing rigidity away from the main man onto himself. According to co-star Eli Wallach, McQueen would shake his shotgun shells and take off his hat to examine the solar in scenes collectively.

In the scene earlier than The Magnificent Seven drive the hearse to the graveyard, McQueen bends down from his saddle to dip water along with his hat as all of them cross the stream. The ultimate straw, Brynner, who would counter this by lighting his cigar, advised him: “If you don’t stop that I’m going to take off my hat, and then no one will look at you for the rest of the film.” The King and I star then employed an assistant to depend the variety of instances McQueen touched his personal hat when Brynner was talking.

The feuding pair additionally wished to look taller than one another, so Brynner would make somewhat mound of earth to face on in his pictures along with his co-star. McQueen would reply with an motion equally as infantile by kicking this heap over each time he handed him.

Robert Vaughn remembered how The Great Escape star claimed the gun Brynner was utilizing, a Colt Peacemaker with an ivory grip, was “too fancy” for him. He additionally thought the main man’s horse was too huge, despite the fact that Vaughn had the most important. After this was identified by the latter, McQueen replied: “I don’t care about yours. It’s Brynner’s horse I’m worried about.”

Brynner and McQueen’s feuding became so bad that it spread through to the other Magnificent Seven stars like Charles Bronson, who all began trying stunts of their own to get the audience’s attention and stand out from the crowd. A lot of this did end up in the final film, but director John Sturges was terrified by how he ended up losing control of his cast like this. It wasn’t until 1980 when 50-year-old McQueen was dying of cancer that he phoned up Brynner to reconcile and thank him.

Brynner asked why he was thanking him and McQueen replied: “You coulda had me kicked off the movie when I rattled you. but you let me stay and that picture made me, so thanks.”

The King and I star replied: “I am the king and you are the rebel prince: every bit as royal… and dangerous to cross.” Brynner himself would die 5 years later in 1985 from lung most cancers at simply 65.