Rob Lowe Reveals He and Tom Cruise Almost Didn’t Make It Through One Night While Filming ‘The Outsiders’ (1983)
Rob Lowe and Francis Ford Coppola, the director of the 1983 movie ‘The Outsiders’, recently reminisced about Coppola’s role in helping the young actors get into character. Lowe, Tom Cruise, Patrick Swayze, Matt Dillon, Emilio Estevez, and Ralph Macchio were among the young, skilled cast members of the 1965 film, which portrayed the struggle between two adolescent gangs: the Greasers and the affluent Socs.
Coppola recalls how the ensemble was very supportive of one other during the filming process and tryouts, even though they were competitive. He explained how, although competing for the same roles, the young performers would support one another. To promote a sense of camaraderie, Lowe continued, the ensemble would assist one another with minor tasks like hair and makeup.
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Coppola established a real-life class distinction between the greasers and the Socs in order to better engross the performers in their parts. In contrast to the Socs, who slept at better hotels, the greasers received crummier transportation, lesser per diems, and less comfortable lodging. Lowe observed that while he appreciated Coppola’s goal of making the greasers empathize with their characters’ struggles, he thought it was ironic that the actors portraying the Socs, with their better benefits, also coveted the greasers’ parts.
Being sent to stay with actual former greasers to have a deeper grasp of the culture was one of the most memorable experiences Lowe could recall. He had a clear memory of spending the night in the basement of people’s houses with Tom Cruise. They joked that the hosts may come down and hurt them throughout the night since they were so anxious.
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–Farheen Ali