James Cameron is known for his intense directing style, and one film of his, in particular, was infamous for its harsh filming conditions. If you haven’t guessed it already, it was his $90 million grossing flick, The Abyss (via Box Office Mojo).
In a recent interview with The New York Times, Sigourney Weaver revealed she was glad not to have been a part of the film after getting a taste of Cameron’s directing style during Aliens.
He was wildly funny, witty. I can understand why that guy couldn’t come out during ‘Aliens,’ because that was a tough shoot, especially for him. Let’s put it this way: I’m glad I wasn’t shooting ‘The Abyss’ with him.
She recalled when she went for dinner with the director after wrapping the film. While Cameron was pretty intense on set, he was a different man when the shoot was done.
Sigourney Weaver On James Cameron’s Intense Directing Style
Sigourney Weaver as Ellen Ripley in Aliens | Credits: 20th Century Fox
James Cameron is one of the few filmmakers known for their extreme passion for filmmaking and being a tough nut on set. In The New York Times’ cover story for Cameron, Sigourney Weaver revealed her experience of shooting the 1986 film Aliens with him.
Weaver recalled that Cameron, who was new to the franchise, was struggling to get along with a young female actress who was facing trouble with some props
I sort of trundled up to him and I said, ‘You know, when you yell at an actor, you yell at all of us, so understand that what she was doing actually was very hard. Maybe shoot something else while she gets used to doing this stuff the way you want it.’
While other directors might have minded having a young actress stand up to them, Cameron understood and followed her advice. Weaver later called him a good guy but reckons he has since mellowed down.
The Abyss Stars Went Through Hell and Back During Shoot
James Cameron’s The Abyss is a 1989 science fiction film. Starring Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and Michael Biehn, the film production was pretty harrowing on the cast (via Syfy).
About 45% of the principal photography took place underwater, and the film was shot in an abandoned nuclear power plant in South Carolina. The cast spent over 70 hours a week filming for six months, and Harris once admitted he broke down while driving home once.
Even the director himself was not safe during the shoot and once almost died when his oxygen levels suddenly started dropping while underwater. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Harris revealed he nearly drowned while filming.
We were guinea pigs, in a way, Jim wasn’t quite sure how this was all gonna go down… [in the drowning scene I was] screaming at her to come back and wake up, and I was slapping her across the face and I see that they’ve run out of film in the camera—there’s a light on the camera—and nobody had said anything. And Mary Elizabeth stood up and said, ‘We are not animals!’
He stated, referring to the sequence in the film where Mastrantonio’s character sacrifices herself and is then revived by Harris. The actress reportedly walked off the set because it was extremely difficult.
However, looking back now, Harris has no hard feelings for the film or Cameron.
It was very difficult, but it was worth it, I met some great people. The Abyss is a really great movie up until the last 10 minutes, which was the big disappointment. I like Jim. He’s an incredibly talented, intelligent guy. In subsequence years after filming, it was always good to see him.
Well, today the film is a cult classic that went on to be nominated for four Academy Awards and won the Best Visual Effects award at the 62nd Academy Awards.
AspectDetailsTitleThe AbyssTypeAmerican science fiction film DirectorJames CameronMain castEd Harris (Bud Brigman), Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (Lindsey Brigman), Michael Biehn (Lt Hiram Coffey)PremiseA civilian diving team is recruited by the Navy to search for a lost nuclear sub, discovering mysterious underwater beings and facing sabotage and flooding dangers at extreme ocean depths.Runtime140 minutes ReleaseAugust 9, 1989
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The Abyss is available for streaming on Disney+.
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