Laurence Fishburne has recently shared an anecdote from the filming of the 1979 cinematic masterpiece, Apocalypse Now, revealing that director Francis Ford Coppola expressed "disappointment" regarding his lack of "sexual experience" as a teenager.
In the Apple TV+ documentary Number One on the Call Sheet: Black Leading Men in Hollywood, Fishburne recounted how his youthful inexperience affected a particular scene in the epic war film.
“There’s a scene in Apocalypse Now that got cut from the original film, and then it’s been put back in the redux,” the Matrix star recounted as per a report on The Hollywood Reporter. “I was 14, 15, whatever, trying to do this scene talking about sex, and I had no sexual experience. Like, none.”
Fishburne continued, noting that the acclaimed director “couldn’t figure out how to get me to be any more experienced than I am, but he kept asking me to do it over and over again. I did something like 40 takes. It was really bad. And I could tell that he was disappointed. So I was feeling really, really down, really dejected.”
Despite this discouraging moment on set, the Black-ish alum recalled a moment of encouragement from Apocalypse Now co-star Martin Sheen, which he credited with "saving my life".
"I remember Martin whispering to me, 'Has anyone ever told you that you're a truly talented actor?'" Fishburne shared. "And I replied, 'No.' He then affirmed, 'You are a truly talented actor".' Fishburne emphasised Sheen's gesture, stating, “That’s what being No. 1 on a call sheet is about for me.”
Apocalypse Now, which garnered two Academy Awards, depicted the story of a U.S. Army officer in Vietnam tasked with assassinating a rogue Special Forces colonel believed to have descended into madness.
Although the incident was not a highlight of Fishburne's early career, it seemingly did not hinder his professional relationship with Coppola. They have collaborated on several other projects, including Rumble Fish, The Cotton Club, Gardens of Stone, and most recently, Megalopolis.