Recently, the Saving Private Ryan actors have released details on what it was like filming the iconic movie and the rigorous training they had to undergo in preparation for the film. Saving Private Ryan is an Academy Award-winning film set during World War II. The popular movie follows the soldiers of the 2nd Ranger Battalion as they embark on a mission to rescue Private James Ryan, a missing soldier. The movie stars some high-profile names, including Matt Damon and Tom Hanks. A highly celebrated film, things behind the scenes might not be all that they seem… Read below for more!
Saving Private Ryan Actors Had to Attend Bootcamp
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According to the Saving Private Ryan actors, director Steven Spielberg sent the cast to boot camp to prepare for the shooting of the film. To bring as much authenticity as possible to the film, Spielberg hired military advisor Dale Dye, who was formerly a captain in the U.S. Marine Corps, to train the actors. Tom Hanks and the rest of the cast were trained as infantrymen to get as close of an experience as possible to what war is like without actually going. Actor Edward Burns described the boot camp as “the worst experience of my life,” per AOL.
According to several cast members, as part of their training, the Saving Private Ryan actors were made to sleep on the ground outside and eat 1940s-style army rations; they were woken up every day at 5 am with Dye screaming at them and were even forced to train in the rain, so a lot of days, they returned to base camp covered head to toe in mud. If someone messed up, everyone was punished with push-ups and sit-ups. According to Yahoo, actor Adam Goldberg, who played Private Mellish, stated, “We were forced to be ‘method,’ whether we wanted to or not. The only way I could get through it was to shut myself down and become this soldier.”
Training Was Hard for the Saving Private Ryan Actors
The Saving Private Ryan actors underwent extensive training, with Giovanni Ribisi telling AOL, “We were soaking wet, hiking five miles a day with 40 pounds of gear on our backs, getting about three hours of sleep”. Training supposedly got so bad the actors all took a vote and decided to quit; Tom Hanks, the star of the film, called Spielberg and asked him what he would like the cast to do. Spielberg told Hanks to deal with it, and Hanks was able to convince his fellow castmates to stay and continue training.
In an effort to win the cast’s favor back, Dye stood out in the rain and made an apology to the cast. He told them that they owed it to the people they were portraying in the film to get it right, and in order to get it right, they needed an idea of what war was actually like. Thankfully, his speech worked, and the cast got back to work. Read more about the boot camp here!
Why Was One Saving Private Ryan Actor Excused from Training?
Steven Spielberg reportedly excused Matt Damon from boot camp, which bred resentment amongst the other Saving Private Ryan actors. However, this worked out well for the movie, as Damon’s character was supposed to be ostracized from the rest of the group onscreen, too. Per Screen Rant, this resentment translated well to the screen, and the authentic feelings of animosity and frustration towards Ryan made the film more believable. Saving Private Ryan went on to win five Oscars, including Best Director for Spielberg, so he must have done something right!
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