Stanley Kubrick didn’t set out to be anyone’s hired hand, but the industry had other ideas. The late director, who was infamous for having total creative control and methodical perfection, found himself in a tight spot after The Killing and Paths of Glory brought him critical praise without box office results.
While he was well aware of his immense talent, it was a harsh truth that talent alone didn’t cover his rent or repay loans. Subsequently, Kubrick found himself scraping by on borrowed money from his producing partner.
Stanley Kubrick’s Reluctant Studio Gig
Hollywood loves a story where a promising filmmaker gets plucked from the indie world and handed the keys to a blockbuster. Sometimes, it works out, but most of the time, it doesn’t, as the path isn’t always smooth.
A few directors, such as Christopher Nolan or David Lynch fits to that category, but when it comes to Kubrick, he doesn’t exactly fit into that mold. Why? Because he was too focused and unwilling to let go of the steering wheel.
He wasn’t built to play nice with studios forever, but after being fired from One-Eyed Jacks by Marlon Brando and losing two years of his life to nothing, he had little choice. He needed something, or to be honest, anything that would keep the lights on.
And that something came with Spartacus. It was a sprawling historical epic already packed with names and studio hands all over the production. Kirk Douglas, who had worked with Kubrick before, brought him in after firing the previous director. It was a big-budget beast with awards buzz baked in, and it couldn’t have been further from the intimate films that had built Kubrick’s name.
Stanley Kubrick’s Discontent with Spartacus
Naturally, as any Kubrick fan would fathom, he absolutely loathed the experience. It wasn’t his film, it was everyone’s. Douglas had the final word, the studio pulled strings, and Kubrick’s usual control slipped through his fingers.
According to Far Out Magazine, Kubrick explained, “It was the only one of my films over which I did not have complete control; although I was the director, mine was the only one of many voices to which Kirk listened.”
Yet, despite the compromises and frustrations, Spartacus was a hit. It brought in money and kept Kubrick afloat at a time when he needed it most.
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