Academy Award-winning filmmaker Clint Eastwood hosted an early screening of his latest directorial venture, “Richard Jewell,” for the United States Marines at California’s Camp Pendleton to show his appreciation for their hard work and service.
Eastwood introduced the Dec. 7, 2019, screening in person, initially apologizing for arriving late; his helicopter had been waylaid by dense fog. He was, nonetheless, very warmly received by the audience.
Eastwood openly voiced his appreciation for the Marines during his visit: “I’m proud that I got a chance to play a Marine,” he said, “even though I’m not qualified to be a Marine at this present time.
“I was raised during World War II,” 89-year-old Eastwood continued, “and whenever they did movies based on the Marine Corps, I was always right there. It was always exciting stuff.”
Eastwood stayed to sign autographs for Marines, sailors, family members, and fans after the screening. The last time that Eastwood visited Camp Pendleton was during the filming of his 1986 film “Heartbreak Ridge,” although in the film, Camp Pendleton’s environs were used to portray North Carolina’s Camp Lejeune.
“It’s changed so much,” Eastwood commented. “The base has gotten huge. It was nice then and it’s nice now.”
Eastwood’s latest work, “Richard Jewell,” is based on the true story of security guard Richard Allensworth Jewell’s attempt to save lives during the bomb threat at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. The media initially portrayed Jewell as having been involved in the bombing at Centennial Olympic Park; he was innocent, later acquitted, and then hailed as a hero.
Richard Jewell opened in movie theaters nationwide on Dec. 13, 2019. Lead actor Paul Walter Hauser plays the protagonist, the movie’s namesake; Olivia Wilde, Sam Rockwell, John Hamm, and Kathy Bates star alongside.
The Marine who interviewed Eastwood before the screening first thanked both him and Navy Motion Pictures for representing Marine Sergeant Thomas “Gunny” Highway, Eastwood’s character in “Richard Jewell.” He then referred to the movie as a “great story about one man who stood by his principles.”
Eastwood joked, returning to his helicopter to leave Camp Pendleton after the screening and after the fog had lifted: “You finally got that thing running?”
“We made it,” his pilot replied. Besides making it safely into the air, Eastwood also made the days of hundreds of Marine movie-goers at Camp Pendleton that day, reminding them with his presence and his praise of how much their service is appreciated.
The iconic director, born in 1930, rose to fame in the television series “Rawhide.” He achieved international stardom in the epic “Man with No Name” Sergio Leone trilogy of spaghetti Westerns in the 1960s, “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly,” foremost.
His role in the five “Dirty Harry” films throughout the 70s and 80s cemented Eastwood as a household name, and a glittering directorial career followed. Eastwood’s 2004 drama “Million Dollar Baby” won the director Academy Awards for both Best Director and Best Motion Picture.
