Space Cowboys

Space Cowboys (2000)

Timing: 2:10 (130 min)

6.386/10
1317

6.587/10
8645

6.5/10
91000

All about film

Video 6

Photo 33

Actors and characters

Release date

2000-08-04

Country

United States

Production

Warner Bros. Pictures, Village Roadshow Pictures, Malpaso Productions, Mad Chance, Clipsal Films

Genre

Action, Adventure, Thriller

Budget

$65 000 000

Revenue

$128 884 132

Website

https://www.warnerbros.com/movies/space-cowboys

Director

Clint Eastwood

Actors

Clint Eastwood, Tommy Lee Jones, Donald Sutherland, James Garner, James Cromwell, Marcia Gay Harden, William Devane, Loren Dean, Courtney B. Vance, Barbara Babcock
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

Producer

Clint Eastwood, Andrew Lazar

Operator

Jack N. Green

Composer

Lennie Niehaus

Artist

Audition

Phyllis Huffman, Liz Keigley, Sari E. Keigley

Editing

Joel Cox
All team (91)

• Initially, Clint Eastwood refused to direct the film, considering the script too implausible. He changed his mind in 1998 when 77-year-old astronaut John Glenn flew into space.
• Initially, Sean Connery was supposed to play Jerry O'Neil, and Jack Nicholson was considered for the role of Tank Sullivan. Ultimately, these roles were played by Donald Sutherland and James Garner, respectively.
• The filming was difficult for the actors: 72-year-old James Garner, for example, broke his arm.
• The film uses real footage shot in space.
• According to editor Joel Cox, Clint Eastwood, accustomed to working very quickly, shot 35-40 takes a day.
• Clint Eastwood composed a musical theme that plays at the beginning of the film. It was ultimately included in the overall soundtrack created by composer Lennie Niehaus.
• Clint Eastwood initially refused to film this movie, considering the script too implausible. He changed his mind in 1998, when 77-year-old astronaut John Glenn flew into space.
• According to editor Joel Cox, Clint Eastwood, accustomed to working very quickly, shot 35-40 takes a day.
• Clint Eastwood composed a musical theme that plays at the beginning of the film. It was eventually included in the overall soundtrack created by composer Lennie Niehaus.
• Filming caused health problems for some actors: James Garner suffered a shoulder injury, and Donald Sutherland injured his knee.
• Jerry O'Neil was initially intended to play Sean Connery's role, and Tanka Sullivan was to play Jack Nicholson's. Ultimately, those roles were played by Donald Sutherland and James Garner, respectively.
• NASA blueprints of the actual Mission Control Center were used in constructing the sets for Mission Control.
• Clint Eastwood was initially supposed to produce and star in the film, with someone else directing. However, when several directors who were offered the job decided that filming spaceflights would be difficult and declined, Eastwood decided to direct the film himself.
• As the orbital spacecraft approaches the John F. Kennedy Space Center, a double sonic boom can be heard (when breaking the sound barrier). It is double because the spacecraft creates two shock waves – from the nose and the tail.
• According to the special effects supervisor, Adam Savage, they chose 'Rolo' candy wrappers through trial and error to simulate gold foil.
• NASA offered its special fixed-wing aircraft for filming (it provides short periods of near-weightlessness, used for astronaut training, research, and filmmaking) – in 1995, it was used during the filming of Ron Howard's science fiction drama 'Apollo 13'. Clint Eastwood declined the offer, fearing that the older actors would feel too ill during the flight and would be unable to perform.
• In actual shuttles, the seats are arranged in two rows (four in the front and two in the back), but Clint Eastwood wanted to show a different seat configuration and, accordingly, the characters in them.
• The filmmakers, led by Clint Eastwood, initially thought they would need forty special effects shots. In reality, around three hundred special effects shots were included in the film.
• In the scenes of the shuttle landing, Clint Eastwood used archival footage of 'space shuttle' landings.
• The original script mentioned the placement of combat assets in orbit (the so-called 'IKON' project). NASA demanded the script be rewritten, not wanting to be associated with the militarization of space.
• NASA offered its special fixed-wing aircraft for filming (it provides short-term exposure to near-weightlessness, is used to train astronauts, conduct research, and film movies) – in 1995, it was used during the filming of Ron Howard's science fiction drama "Apollo 13." Clint Eastwood declined the offer, fearing that the older actors would become too ill during the flight and would no longer be able to perform.
• The original script mentioned the deployment of weapons systems in orbit (the so-called "IKON" project). NASA demanded that the script be rewritten, not wanting to be associated with the militarization of space.