Which actress paid the ultimate price for her career decisions

Which actress paid the ultimate price for her career decisions? Shelley Duvall

Alfred Hitchcock isn’t the only example of an amazing director who treats his cast and crew like dirt. Stanley Kubrick ruined Shelley Duvall’s career and life. There is no doubt that Duvall excelled in her role but this was never recognized on set by Kubrick, who constantly criticized her. In the documentary shot by his daughter, Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures, Jack Nicholson praises Kubrick and their collaboration but points out that he turned into a “different director” when he was working with Duvall. He kept her isolated, cut many of her lines unexpectedly and crowned his behavior with the “torture” while shooting the baseball bat scene which entered in The Guinness Book of Records as the most takes ever for a dialogue-scene, shot with genuine crying. Duvall described her experience in The Shining in David Hughes’ book The Complete Kubrick where she said: “From May until October I was really in and out of ill health because the stress of the role was so great. Stanley pushed me and prodded me further than I’ve ever been pushed before. It’s the most difficult role I’ve ever had to play”. Moreover, Kubrick’s daughter Vivian Kubrick revealed that her father’s demands extended to the point when he ordered the entire film crew to show no sympathy for Duvall. He even said, “Don’t sympathize with Shelley”. He advised the crew to ignore her constantly and himself refused to compliment her work. This was truly role preparation like no one had ever seen. The iconic “door scene” with Duvall was shot for three days and almost 60 doors were used during the shoots. Even Jack Nicholson has stated that she had the toughest job that he had ever seen. When Duvall was asked to describe her personal views and experience of the shooting of The Shining, she said: “It was like some sort of primal scream therapy. Almost unbearable…But from other points of view, really very nice, I suppose…After the day was over and I’d cried for my 12 hours, I went home very contented. It had a very calming effect.” Shelley Duvall is now broke and struggles with severe mental health issues.

Which actress paid the ultimate price for her career decisions