The role of Rudy Butler carried a dangerous off-screen reputation because the actor eventually cast as the murderous pursuer, Al Lettieri, was himself known as a heavy drinker. Lettieri came to Sam Peckinpah's attention through producer Albert S. Ruddy, who was working with him on The Godfather. Peckinpah and Lettieri shared a taste for alcohol, but Lettieri's drinking was described as unpredictable and created problems during filming. The part required Rudy to survive multiple gunshots, terrorize a kidnapped veterinarian's household, and launch the film's final blood-soaked pursuit through the Laughlin Hotel. That volatile behavior made the set more difficult to manage, particularly under Peckinpah's already alcohol-heavy working conditions. Lettieri's performance nevertheless became one of the film's most memorable elements: Rudy is both grotesquely menacing and physically indestructible, surviving Doc's attempted execution because he is wearing a bulletproof vest before finally dying in the El Paso shootout. The production history surrounding him reflects the often unstable boundary between the hard-drinking mythology of New Hollywood and the practical demands of staging elaborate action sequences.
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AI concept artworkArchive Record · 1970s
Al Lettieri's Drinking Turned Rudy Butler Into a Production Hazard
Al Lettieri / 1970s
The role of Rudy Butler carried a dangerous off-screen reputation because the actor eventually cast as the murderous pursuer, Al Lettieri, was himself known as a heavy drinker. Lettieri came to Sam Peckinpah's attention through producer Albert S. Ruddy, who was working with him on The Godfather. Peckinpah and Lettieri shared a taste for alcohol, but Lettieri's drinking was described as unpredictable and created problems during filming. The part required Rudy to survive multiple gunshots, terrorize a kidnapped veterinarian's household, and launch the film's final blood-soaked pursuit through the Laughlin Hotel. That volatile behavior made the set more difficult to manage, particularly under Peckinpah's already alcohol-heavy working conditions. Lettieri's performance nevertheless became one of the film's most memorable elements: Rudy is both grotesquely menacing and physically indestructible, surviving Doc's attempted execution because he is wearing a bulletproof vest before finally dying in the El Paso shootout. The production history surrounding him reflects the often unstable boundary between the hard-drinking mythology of New Hollywood and the practical demands of staging elaborate action sequences.
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