The Story Behind How John Wayne’s ‘The Conqueror’ Killed Most of Its Cast
What To Know
- The 1956 film The Conqueror, produced by Howard Hughes and starring John Wayne, was filmed in a Utah location contaminated by radioactive fallout from nearby nuclear testing.
- Despite warnings, the cast and crew were exposed to hazardous conditions.
In pursuit of cinematic immortality, some productions have placed their cast and crew in extraordinarily precarious situations, pushing the limits of safety in service of authenticity and spectacle. While some filmmaking has always involved a degree of risk, only a small number of productions have crossed a tragic threshold, with danger escalating beyond injury and, in rare cases, resulting in death. But nothing has ever matched the scale of loss or long-term repercussions left in the wake of The Conqueror.
In 1956, Dick Powell‘s epic The Conqueror gave new meaning to the term “disaster film.” The poorly received historical saga was notoriously miscast, with John Wayne in the role of Genghis Khan, and its commercial failure was so severe that it contributed to the eventual collapse of RKO Pictures. Yet the film’s legacy is far darker than its critical and financial shortcomings would suggest.
Everett Collection
The film was produced by the reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes, who selected Snow Canyon, Utah, as the primary filming location for its striking natural beauty. What Hughes failed to account for, however, was that the area lay downwind of St. George, Utah, in a region later associated with radioactive fallout from U.S. nuclear weapons testing. Airborne dust in the area was heavily contaminated with radioactive particles, which settled into the soil and water supply, affected local livestock, and posed a serious health risk to anyone who inhaled or ingested the material during prolonged exposure.
Apparently, Hughes and Powell knew about the nuclear testing, but the filmmakers were assured by the government that the recent tests would not be damaging to the health of the cast and crew. Wayne even took publicity photos with his children holding a Geiger counter.
Everett Collection
As shooting began, it became clear that there were massive issues with the production. The Duke was far from suited to play the Mongolian warlord. Powell, who initially hated the original script, was at odds with Hughes and Wayne and quickly lost control of his film. Flash floods wiped out sets and destroyed costumes, temperatures rose to over 120 degrees and caused extras to pass out, and a panther attacked actress Susan Hayworth. But that was nothing compared to the sandstorms which brought with it a deadly dust that covered the entire production.
By 1980, 91 out of 220 crew members had cancer, with over 40 dying from it. Most of the main cast, including Wayne, Susan Hayward, Agnes Moorehead, as well as the film’s director, Powell, all died from cancer. Even John Wayne’s sons, Michael and Patrick, suffered health issues.
In the end, The Conqueror became a cautionary tale of environmental and production negligence, underscoring the devastating consequences that can arise when the demands of filmmaking are given greater importance than human lives.
TV Insider