Burt Reynolds’ star was on the rise as the 1960s drew to a close. His profile had been boosted by his 50-episode run on CBS’ Western series “Gunsmoke,” which he joined during its eighth season because star Dennis Weaver was making noise about quitting the show. When Reynolds left the series, he split his time between television and movies as he searched for that role that would launch him to full-blown stardom. His ship finally came in at the outset of the 1970s when he was offered the part of chest surgeon Trapper John McIntyre in Robert Altman’s Korean War comedy “M*A*S*H.” The film would go on to become the third highest-grossing production of 1970 (behind “Love Story” and “Airport”), but, as you might’ve noticed, it didn’t have Reynolds in it. That’s because he turned it down to star in the unusual adventure flick “Skullduggery.”
As a Reynolds fan, “Skullduggery” is one of those pre-stardom movies I routinely skip because I hear it’s lousy and not in a fun way. Reynolds plays a man hunting for phosphorus deposits in New Guinea with his sidekick (Roger C. Carmel). When they join an expedition led by an archaeologist (Susan Clark), they make a stunning discovery that may just be the missing link between apes and humans. They call this tribe of people the Tropis, and when word of their find is relayed to the United States, the expedition’s financier seeks to breed the Tropis to enslave them. From there, “Skullduggery” eventually becomes a courtroom drama where the expedition members make a case for the Tropis as human beings.
“Skullduggery” was panned by critics and lost loads of money for Universal Pictures. What did Reynolds see in the movie, and did he regret ceding the role of Trapper John to Elliot Gould?
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Skullduggery was a career wake-up call for Reynolds
Burt Reynolds as Douglas Temple holding a skull in Skullduggery – Universal Pictures
“Skullduggery” was based on the critically-acclaimed French novel “Les Animaux dénaturés” (which translated to “You Shall Know Them, Borderline” or “The Murder of the Missing Link”). Otto Preminger toyed with the idea of directing a film adaptation, but when he backed out, the rights to the project went to “Logan’s Run” producer Saul David, who’s best known for his genre hits “Our Man Flint,” “In Like Flint,” and “Fantastic Voyage.” The production of “Skullduggery” got off to a rotten start when David fired Mercury Theatre veteran Richard Wilson after the first day of shooting. Prolific studio hand Gordon Douglas then replaced Wilson, and, well, he didn’t exactly impress Reynolds.
In a 1976 interview with Gene Siskel, Reynolds said he dug the script. But he knew early on that the production was going south. As he told Siskel:
“Badly directed, kind of sloughed off. Susan Clark was good; she’s a good actress. But nobody knew how to sell the picture. Any time you have Pat Suzuki dressed as a small ape, I think you’re in trouble.”
At the time of the film’s release, Reynolds knew he had to get pickier in his choice of material. As he told the Chicago Tribune in 1970, after so many “wonderful, forgettable pictures … I suddenly realized I was as hot as Leo Gorcey.” (I have no idea if that was a joke about Gorcey’s late career decline or a reference to the actor’s very recent death.) Reynolds responded by starring in the popular crime flick “Fuzz” and taking Marlon Brando’s coulda-been role in “Deliverance” as an outdoorsman who, along with his friends, finds himself being hunted by hill people. For the rest of the 1970s, Reynolds was arguably the most sought-after movie star in Hollywood.
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