I’ve been a huge fan of The Hunt for Red October ever since I saw it in theaters when I was 14-years-old. The movie has since become what I would call a “remote dropper,” meaning if I happen to scroll by it on my TV looking for something to watch, there’s a better-than-excellent chance I’ll settle on watching the Sean Connery-led submarine movie again. I just learned that Connery almost turned down the role of Soviet sub captain Marko Ramius, and a fax machine was to blame. Boy, that takes me back.
Connery Argued The Plot Made No Sense In The Context Of The Time
I’ve watched The Hunt For Red October dozens of times over the years (including often with my Paramount+ subscription). However, until just recently, I’d never watched any of the behind-the-scenes stuff about it. When I did, I learned that Connery actually said no to the part, one of his most iconic in a career filled with great roles, because he didn’t think the script made any sense. It must have been early 1989, as filming began in early April. Gorbachev was in power in the USSR. Perestroika and glasnost were the policies of the day, and the communist country was on the verge of collapsing, ending the Cold War.
Connery just didn’t think the story of the Soviet Union as a naval power made any sense in the context of 1989, so he turned down the role and gave his reasons. It turns out the first page of the fax, the one that explained the story actually took place in 1984 and not 1989 or 1990, didn’t make it to Connery’s printer. The Untouchables actor loved the script, however, and when he was told it was set in the recent past, he reversed his decision, and I’m forever grateful for it.
The Film Almost Looked Completely Different
The reason Connery was even offered the part was that Austrian actor Klaus Maria Brandauer (who co-starred with the Scot in Connery’s final Bond movie, Never Say Never Again, and later in The Russia House) had a conflict and had to drop out of production after he was initially cast as Ramius. That would have made for a very different movie. That wasn’t the only difference that could have been.
According to producers, they initially reached out to Kevin Costner to play Jack Ryan, a role that would eventually go to Alec Baldwin. Costner was in the midst of getting Dances With Wolves off the ground and didn’t have time. They also wanted Harrison Ford in the role, but he turned them down. Of course, Ford would later replace Baldwin in the role in Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger. As much as I love Ford in the role, I’m actually partial to Baldwin, so I’m happy about this eventual choice, as well.
For the generations who have come after the invention of email, fax machines are a bygone relic of the past, no different than rotary telephones and buggy whips. The fact that a cover sheet didn’t get transmitted isn’t surprising, but thankfully it was all a misunderstanding. The Hunt for Red October isn’t nearly as good without Connery.
