Throughout his entire career, Kevin Costner has starred in multiple award-winning projects, a majority of which have earned tremendous acclaim, like Yellowstone. But one of his works met with such extraordinary heights of success that all his other pieces are yet to surpass. This project is none other than his Western masterpiece directorial debut movie from 1990, Dances with Wolves.
Not only did this film grant him three of his first-ever and only Oscar nominations and two wins, but it also launched him as a household name in the entertainment industry. But as much as his directing and acting skills played a major role in the film’s success, the truth is that the 1990 masterpiece just may have never been made had it not been for Costner’s ‘pain in the a—’ friend Michael Blake!
Kevin Costner’s ‘Pain in the a—’ Friend Contributed Majorly to Dances with Wolves
Although Kevin Costner has starred in quite a few Western projects, none of them has garnered as much acclaim and praise from the Academy as Dances with Wolves. And contributing tremendously to the mere existence of the masterpiece involved an immaculate script from writer Michael Blake.
However, what’s surprising is that Blake was actually ‘a real pain in the a—’ friend for Costner.
As per Far Out Magazine, the Yellowstone actor recalled his friendship with Blake as:
You know, I had a friend… a real pain in the a— friend. I would get him interviews, and the people would give me a really bad report. Like, he was rude!
But even that isn’t all. What’s even more surprising is the fact that the 1990 Western mastermind writer actually bemoaned how Hollywood didn’t know about good scripts.
According to what Costner is said to have shared:
He started bemoaning that it was Hollywood, that Hollywood doesn’t know what they’re doing. ‘They don’t know about scripts; they don’t know what good scripts are.’ And I put him up against the wall and said, ‘Stop it! F—ing stop it! If you f—ing hate scripts so much, quit writing them.’
Although it may seem unbelievable, this is only true considering how The Bodyguard actor himself reportedly claimed this.
Needless to say, this incident was followed by Blake making his way to Costner’s home to live with him since he had nowhere else to dwell. It was during this very time that the writer developed the story for his Oscar-winning gem as well.
However, instead of commending him for it, the Yellowstone actor surprisingly never even wanted to read what Blake wrote!
Kevin Costner Actually Never Wanted to Read the Story for Dances with Wolves
According to what Far Out Magazine further cites him as having said, Costner never really wanted to read whatever Blake wrote during his stay at Costner’s house. This included even the story that later went on to get adapted into the script for Dances with Wolves.
As the Horizon: An American Saga actor himself admitted:
Every night he’d say, ‘Can I read to you what I wrote?’ and I’d go ‘No.’ ‘Did you read my script?’ ‘No.’ ‘Did you read my story?’ ‘No.’
However, this behavior only lasted while Blake was still spending time at his home, because as soon as he left to dwell at another friend’s home, Costner decided to give his manuscript a chance.
And he is glad he decided to do that because the exceptional storyline developed by his ‘real pain in the a—’ friend didn’t cease to leave even him amused either.
As Far Out Magazine cites Costner admitting:
So finally, I picked it up and I read it. And it was Dances With Wolves. And I read it all through the night, and I called him up, and I said ‘Michael, I’m gonna make this into a movie…’
Well, the rest was pretty much history, because the film eventually went on to score majestical reviews from critics and general audiences alike.
Not only that but it even garnered 12 Oscar nods including 7 wins, two of which were for Best Picture and Actor for Costner, and one of which was for Blake for Best Screenplay — some of the most well-deserved accolades from the Academy.
You can watch Dances with Wolves on fuboTV.
