Trivia / Salvador

• Box Office Bomb: Budget, $4.5 million. Box office, $1.5 million.
• Cast the Runner-Up: Martin Sheen was originally cast as Richard Boyle while James Woods was originally offered the part of Doctor Rock, but Woods convinced Stone that he would be better in the lead role. Sheen, who was uncomfortable with the material, agreed and allowed Woods to take the role.
• The Danza: John Savage as John Cassady.
• Doing It for the Art: Oliver Stone had a very hard time getting funding for this film. He was forced to put a second mortgage on his house to get finance until British producer John Daly pledged his support to the project. The film was made on a budget of just under $5 million.
  • Near the end of the film, there is a massive cavalry charge by the rebels. According to James Belushi, Stone forfeited his $25,000 paycheck to pay for the scene with the horses.
• Dueling Works: Stone had Oscar nominations for Best Original Screenplay for this and Platoon. Both lost to Hannah and Her Sisters.
• Hostility on the Set:
  • James Woods and James Belushi frequently clashed during the filming. Their competitive rivalry was secretly encouraged by Oliver Stone.
  • According to Stone, there was a dinner where Woods and Belushi met their real-life counterparts. In Stone's words, Belushi stormed out of the dinner in a rage, while Woods did not get along with the real Boyle.
• Throw It In!:
  • The infamous scene where Richard Boyle takes confession was entirely improvised, according to James Woods. Woods also believed that scene was what garnered him his Oscar nomination.
  • Richard Boyle revealing the last roll of film from his boot heel was improvised by Woods. Oliver Stone was furious with him, as it was the last shot they needed to film and could only get one take. However, Stone kept the scene in the final product and later admitted to loving the scene.
• Underage Casting: James Woods was five years younger than Richard Boyle.
• What Could Have Been:
  • Although Marlon Brando was Oliver Stone's first choice, he also offered the lead role to Paul Newman and Lee Marvin. Newman liked the project but had too many other interests to take that he was unable to fit it into his schedule. Marvin also liked the script but felt he was too old for the role, and he also did not want to travel as much as the film required, due to his health problems. Marvin died the year after the picture was released.
  • Willem Dafoe was on standby in case John Savage was unable to take the role of John Cassady.
  • As with other unrealized Oliver Stone films, there was a proposed sequel provisionally entitled ''Wild Dogs'' that would be based on Richard Boyle's experiences covering the 1975-90 civil war in Lebanon.

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