The production of Flash Gordon was already an enormous gamble for producer Dino De Laurentiis, but its central star became embroiled in a dispute with him before the film was fully completed. Sam J. Jones, a newcomer who had beaten out contenders including Kurt Russell and Arnold Schwarzenegger for the role, reportedly disagreed with De Laurentiis and left the project before post-production. The precise terms of the dispute have never been fully clarified: Jones later discussed the conflict, while director Mike Hodges said in 2020 that only about five or ten minutes of dialogue ultimately required replacement. Nevertheless, a substantial portion of Jones's dialogue was dubbed by Canadian-British actor Peter Marinker, whose identity was reportedly unknown to Jones for years. The effect was particularly awkward because Jones was the film's title character and was already criticized for a wooden performance. His departure also helped kill plans for a sequel, which might have continued the story on Mars. The long aftermath became a central subject of Lisa Downs's 2018 documentary Life After Flash, which examined what happened to Jones after confronting one of Hollywood's most powerful producers.
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AI concept artworkArchive Record · 1980s
Sam J. Jones Walked Away from Flash Gordon—and His Heroic Voice Was Quietly Replaced
Sam J. Jones / Flash Gordon / 1980s
The production of Flash Gordon was already an enormous gamble for producer Dino De Laurentiis, but its central star became embroiled in a dispute with him before the film was fully completed. Sam J. Jones, a newcomer who had beaten out contenders including Kurt Russell and Arnold Schwarzenegger for the role, reportedly disagreed with De Laurentiis and left the project before post-production. The precise terms of the dispute have never been fully clarified: Jones later discussed the conflict, while director Mike Hodges said in 2020 that only about five or ten minutes of dialogue ultimately required replacement. Nevertheless, a substantial portion of Jones's dialogue was dubbed by Canadian-British actor Peter Marinker, whose identity was reportedly unknown to Jones for years. The effect was particularly awkward because Jones was the film's title character and was already criticized for a wooden performance. His departure also helped kill plans for a sequel, which might have continued the story on Mars. The long aftermath became a central subject of Lisa Downs's 2018 documentary Life After Flash, which examined what happened to Jones after confronting one of Hollywood's most powerful producers.
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