“No more wire hangers ever again” is one of the most quotable lines in Hollywood history, and it almost didn't happen.
Faye Dunaway, who played movie star Joan Crawford in 1981's “Mommie Dearest,” is said to have had doubts about bringing the film's most infamous scene to life. In the scene, Crawford [Dunaway] She is seen beating her young adopted daughter Christina [Mara Hobel].
“It was a traumatic situation for Faye during filming,” author A. Ashley Hoff told Fox News Digital. “It's one of the reasons she's hesitant to talk about the film today.”
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Faye Dunaway was reportedly afraid to film the infamous “no more wire hangers” scene for “Mommie Dearest.” (Supreme)
Hoff has written a new book, “With Love, Mommie Dearest: The Making of an Unintentional Camp Classic,” which explores how a box office flop transformed into a cult classic over the years. It also includes new interviews with the cast and crew.
Dunaway, 83, was not involved in the book. A spokesperson for the actress did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
“Joan Crawford once singled out Faye Dunaway as one of the top stars,” Hoff explained. “There was a mutual respect that drew Faye to this role. And I think Faye also hoped she would bring a more three-dimensional take to Joan Crawford… The unfortunate thing is that the movie she signed on to was 'Mommie Dearest.'”
A. Ashley Hoff's new book, “With Love, Mommie Dearest: The Making of an Unintentional Camp Classic,” is now available. (Chicago Press Review)
“Mommie Dearest” is based on the story of Christina Crawford, who claimed in 1978 that her mother, an icon of Hollywood's Golden Age, was a cruel and abusive alcoholic who ruled her home like a tyrant. Joan Crawford, who died in 1977, cut Christina and her adopted son Christopher out of her will “for reasons best known to them.”
Joan Crawford is seen here with her adopted daughter Christina, circa 1946. (Fake Images)
Hoff claimed that Dunaway refused to film the violent and shocking scene.
“She didn't want to be seen hitting Mara,” Hoff explained. “They had to have a person stand in for Mara and Faye to do the hitting with a wire coat hanger. It was a traumatic scene for Faye… She had to overcome her fear to go through with the scene. But she had a lot of mixed feelings even during her preparation and filming.
In the infamous scene, Joan Crawford (Faye Dunaway) is seen beating her adopted daughter Christina Crawford (Mara Hobel) with a wire coat hanger. (Supreme)
“Faye wanted to soften the audience's perception of Joan Crawford,” Hoff continued. “She hoped to bring more balance to the story and perhaps an understanding of what Joan Crawford was dealing with as an older actress. And that scene was violent. She fought tooth and nail not to overdo the violence. She didn't even want to. So they brought in the stuntwomen.”
Hobel, now 53, told Hoff that as a working child actress, she was not that fazed by the scene.
“There was one shot where there was like a mannequin or… I don't know what it was,” Hobel recalled, as quoted by Hoff in his book.
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Actress Faye Dunaway with Mara Hobel and actor Steve Forrest on the set of the Paramount Pictures film “Mommie Dearest” in 1981. (Michael Ochs/Getty Images Archives)
“It wasn't a human being and it wasn't me,” she said. “But in all the other shots it was. They just covered my back with a thick layer of suede or leather and cotton, and then they put a T-shirt over it and then my clothes. And then there was a duvet that she had taken off during the fight, and that's where you see the hit from the coat hanger. Even though I didn't feel the sting on my back, I could feel the hit from the coat hanger on my back, but there was no pain.”
Technical advisor Jonathan Zimbert also said the scene was “very difficult to film.”
“Faye understood very well that this character would be seen, 100 percent, as a monster if she aggressively went about doing what was written in the script,” Zimbert was quoted as saying in the book. “And so she held back. It was more comical.” [on the set] of what exists [on-screen]. And she didn't do it even though she was encouraged again and again and again.”
According to those who were on the set of “Mommie Dearest,” Faye Dunaway did not want to portray Joan Crawford as a monster. (Michael Ochs/Getty Images Archives)
For years, Dunaway has been rumored to misbehave on set like a no-nonsense diva. The star addressed those rumors in an upcoming documentary about her career, Page Six reported.
Hoff said on “Mommie Dearest” that everyone on set had an opinion about Dunaway's behavior.
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“Mommie Dearest” is hailed as a cult classic. (Michael Ochs/Getty Images Archives)
“I spoke to both actors who worked on the set, as well as production staff and crew members who worked behind the scenes,” Hoff told Fox News Digital. “I quoted people who gave their impressions. There were a lot of people who criticized Faye and felt that her behavior was… abusive toward them… But other people felt that Faye Dunaway… takes her career very seriously. She takes her performances very seriously.”
“Mommie Dearest” was based on the book written by Christina Crawford. (Fake Images)
“She would sometimes be hours late to the set,” Hoff said. “A number of people thought it was because she wanted her hair and makeup to be perfect. She wouldn't come out of her trailer until she felt like she looked perfect. There were a lot of people who admired that about her, but there were a lot of people who hadn't had that explained to them. And so, her behavior seemed diva-like to them.”
“There are opinions on both sides,” Hoff said. “But, at the end of the day, Faye is a perfectionist. She gives her all, no matter how long it takes, no matter how much it costs, no matter how it affects the shooting schedule… But I'll let the reader decide.”
Christina Crawford is said to be disappointed by the movie “Mommie Dearest” and the direction the filmmakers took. (M. Caulfield/WireImage/Getty Images)
Hoff said Dunaway isn't the only one who has seemingly distanced herself from the film. Christina, 85, said she was disappointed by the movie.
“There are several scenes that were, shall we say, exaggerated for dramatic purposes,” Hoff explained. “It's one of the reasons Christina Crawford doesn't like the movie. She feels there was a lot that was fictionalized for dramatic purposes. And she's been [accused] to make up or exaggerate their stories. She felt the film did nothing to help her cause. …And many people still dismiss it as a bad movie.
“I think if you're still talking about a movie and debating its merits four decades later, you can't say it's a bad movie,” Hoff continued. “Is it a flawed movie? Absolutely. But you never get bored. It's an entertaining movie from that perspective. It has legitimate messages. For some people, it can be a very therapeutic experience. For others, it provides involuntary laughter.
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Faye Dunaway reportedly distanced herself from “Mommie Dearest” despite its success. (Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images)
“The most common mistake is to think that the film was 'bad'… But from the beginning it was popular with the public. And it still is.”
