In 2023, at the height of actor and writers’ strikes that ground Hollywood to a halt, director Gus Van Sant thought back on being in an earlier labor dispute that saved one of his most beloved movies.
During a video call with Under the Radar to discuss his influential early films, Van Sant says he and his cast and crew went on strike while shooting 1991’s My Own Private Idaho because the studio backtracked a third of their modest budget. Their ensuing week-long strike helped them claw back most of the money, much to Van Sant’s relief, though the experience was highly stressful.
That’s not the only part with unexpected echoes today. The 1991 movie was a bold adaptation of Shakespeare’s that tells the story of narcoleptic gay hustler Mike Waters (River Phoenix), and his well-to-do rebel friend Scott Favor (Keanu Reeves), as they journey from Portland, Oregon to Mike’s native Idaho in search of his mother. Its frank and nuanced portrayal of queer characters is part of the bedrock that LGBTQ+ storytellers build upon today (something Van Sant humbly says he is “proud to be a part of”). It also helped such stories go mainstream, thanks in part to River Phoenix and Keanu Reeves lending their then fresh star power to the movie’s lead roles.
