Back in 1962, John Wayne starred as the leader of a group of professional game catchers in Howard Hawks’ adventure rom-com Hatari!
Filming on location in Tanzania, the film had a very loose script around real-life chases in jeeps and trucks.
Not only were the animals totally wild, but the actors embarked on the catches themselves without the use of stuntmen.
In one famous scene, a rhino escapes, and the stars have to recapture it. This happened for real and wasn’t planned; Hawks spontaneously shot it.
Due to the dangerous nature of the shoot, the actors felt the strain, especially Wayne.
Much of the capture sequence audio had to be re-dubbed due to Duke’s actual cursing while wrestling with the wild animals. Hawks later admitted that Wayne was terrified during some action sequences, especially those where they had to sit in the exposed “catching seat”, when a truck drives over bumpy terrain full of holes. Although this didn’t hinder the star’s sense of humour.
According to the John Wayne estate: “One evening, while taking a break from filming, Red Buttons and John Wayne were playing cards outside when a leopard emerged from the bush. When Buttons mentioned the approaching leopard, Duke calmly said, “See what he wants.”