How Clint Eastwood Landed His Man With No Name Role
In the 1960s, Clint Eastwood went from a struggling TV actor to a Western icon when he landed his legendary Man With No Name role. Known for his toughness and unsurpassed speed as a gunslinger, Eastwood’s Man With No Name is arguably the most popular hero in the Western genre as a whole. Playing this character is also what made it possible for Eastwood to become an international movie star and a household name.
Easily recognized for his trademark poncho and squinting gaze, the Man With No Name was portrayed by Eastwood three times on the big screen. He made his first appearance in Sergio Leone’s Fistful of Dollars in 1964. The Italian movie was such a huge hit that it led to other films of its kind, which are collectively known as Spaghetti Westerns. Before the movie even hit theaters, Eastwood and Leone returned to make For a Few Dollars More and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. And despite there being no connecting plotlines and the fact that his For a Few Dollars More protagonist is technically named “Manco”, it’s generally understood that he played the same mysterious character in all three films.
Related: Every Movie Role Clint Eastwood Turned Down
Clint Eastwood will always be associated with the Man With No Name character, but the actor wasn’t actually the first choice for the part. Eastwood was said to be the last name on a shortlist that included Richard Harrison, Charles Bronson, James Coburn, and Henry Fonda. An old Hollywood story – one that Harrison confirmed to be true in an interview – is that he turned down the starring role in A Fistful of Dollars and then recommended that Eastwood be cast in his place. According to him, the producers told him the names of the actors Leone was looking at, and asked for
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