Fired For Creative Differences
People think that film writers hold creative control. However, that’s exactly how original director Kevin Jarre was fired from his own project.
According to Michael Biehn, this was a distressing ordeal, because he liked Kevin a lot, but Jarre had his own vision for every little detail, like the cast, mustaches, dialogue, and even the saddles.
A Collection of Mustaches
All the male characters in "Tombstone" sported a mustache. Some even grew their own mustaches for the film. Michael Biehn said that Kevin Jarre wanted mustaches that curled up at the end. So, actors who grew a mustache long enough had to wax the end to achieve the right look.
Biehn also said that one of the actors, Jon Tenney, had no time to grow his own mustache so he wore a fake one. He believes that the fake mustache made Tenney feel like the underdog of the group. Maybe the Old West wasn't so different from high school.
Authenticity Is Everything
"Tombstone"’s production was dedicated to strict authenticity in certain parts of the script and especially in the wardrobe department!
The actors were required to wear the authentic, wool clothing of the time period, even on the hottest filming days. That’s dedication!
A Sad Goodbye
Michael Biehn was not the only cast member who was sad to see Kevin Jarre go. According to Sam Elliott, Kurt Russell was also pretty close with Kevin Jarre and was sad to see him go.
Eliot had a great appreciation for Jarre as a writer and a storyteller, and the other actors felt the same. When he left, the actors pulled through just for the sake of completing his project for him.
A Reimagined Tale
Kevin Jarre had an avant-garde approach to the production of "Tombstone" and planned to film it like an old 1940s Western. The production crew didn't like the idea. Jarre wanted to go with an old-fashion long master shot like they used in the 40s, but the production crew wouldn't have it.
They believed the old story had to be shot in a modern way, and that is what ultimately had him fired from his own project.