16 Behind-the-Scenes Facts About That Unhinged Robin Williams ‘Popeye’ Movie
On December 6, 1980, a confusing new chapter in cinema history began with the release of Robert Altman’s Popeye. It might have ruined careers and landed itself on numerous “worst of” lists, but it also landed in our hearts — and made a surprising amount of money.
It Only Exists Because Paramount Lost Annie
In the late ‘70s, the hot ticket comic strip property was Little Orphan Annie. A bidding war between Columbia and Paramount went Columbia’s way, so in a fury, Paramount producer Robert Evans asked studio execs what movie rights to comic strips they already owned. The answer was Popeye.
Dustin Hoffman Was the First Choice to Play Popeye
Today, it seems like Robin Williams was the only choice to play Popeye in the ‘80s, but Evans initially wanted Dustin Hoffman, who hated the script and refused to sign on unless screenwriter Jules Fieffer was fired. It turned out Evans didn’t want him that bad.
Lily Tomlin and Gilda Radner Were Prime Olive Oyls
When Hoffman backed out, so did Lily Tomlin, who had been Evans’s first choice for Olive Oyl. Gilda Radner was subsequently considered, but her agent warned her that the script sucked and so did Evans and Altman.
Evans Wanted John Shlesinger to Direct
Evans’s first choice of director was John Schlesinger, who had previously directed Hoffman in Midnight Cowboy and Marathon Man. If things had worked out differently, we could have gotten a much more serious -- and sexier -- Popeye.
There Was Cocaine Everywhere
Former Paramount CEO Barry Diller remembered Popeye as “the most coked-up film set” he’d ever seen. The drug was so vital to production that the crew had it shipped over from Los Angeles in film canisters to the set in Malta.
It Was Jack Mercer’s Final Film Role
That’s no impersonator in the opening sequence. Jack Mercer provided the voice of the cartoon as he had since the ‘30s: In fact, it was his last film role before he died in 1984.
The Muscles Were a Mess
The prosthetic muscles applied to Williams’s arms weren’t ready by the time filming began, so Altman just put a raincoat on Williams and crossed his fingers. Once they arrived, Williams found that the muscles were a nightmare to remove once he sweated on them, and he was a sweaty guy even during the least cocainey of circumstances.
So Was the Octopus
The practical effects of the octopus that attacks Olive Oyl at the end of the film kept malfunctioning during filming of the scene, and the crew responsible for it was sent home for budget reasons (we’ll get to that). It was left to Shelley Duvall to move the octopus’s arms around her while also “trying to escape.”
That Was Live Singing
Long before Tom Hooper discovered the pitfalls of live singing in a movie musical, Altman had the same bright idea to film Popeye’s musical numbers without a pre-recorded vocal track for actors to lip sync. That resulted in exactly the audio wonkiness that you'd expect.
Williams Had to Redub Much of His Dialogue
Williams’s dialogue was a problem. He had so much trouble enunciating with a pipe in his mouth that producers worried the audience wouldn’t be able to understand him, so he had to re-record many of his lines. “I sounded like a killer whale farting in a wind tunnel,” he later said.
It Was a Budgetary Nightmare
Between production delays, the extravagant set and just so much cocaine, the movie hit its $20 million budget way before planned. After six months of production, Paramount ordered Altman to come home with whatever he had, which would have to suffice.
It Was an Unexpected Success
Though the film was critically panned, it was a surprising box office success, grossing $60 million worldwide. It might have baffled the adults in the audience, but “apparently caught on solidly with young children," Film Comment wrote.
But It Ruined Altman’s Career
No amount of money could stop Robert Altman from being laughed out of Hollywood following Popeye. He fled to Paris, where he mostly directed low-budget theatrical adaptations for indie studios. His last film was a fictionalization of A Prairie Home Companion starring rehab-era Lindsay Lohan.
Siskel and Ebert Gave It Thumbs Up
Two critics who broke away from the pack were two of the most well-known. In a rare case of agreement, both Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert gave Popeye 3.5 out of 4 stars, with Ebert even deeming it “sophisticated entertainment.”
It Has Some Surprising Fans
Despite critical disapproval, some of today’s filmmaking masters are among Popeye’s biggest fans. Paul Thomas Anderson counts it as one of his favorite movies and used one of its songs in Punch-Drunk Love, while Phil Lord said it inspired The Lego Movie.
You Can Still Visit “Popeye Village”
As part of Paramount’s deal with the government in Malta, the set that was built to serve as “Popeye’s Village” was left in place as a tourist attraction. It still stands 45 years later, complete with rides and character visits, like a third-rate Disneyland. If you’re ever in Malta and get tired of its miles of Mediterranean beaches, feel free to stop by.
