Kurt Russell may not have the biggest fan in his fellow actor, Kevin Costner — and the tension likely stems from creative differences. During the early ’90s, the A-listers worked on Westerns revolving around the life of Wyatt Earp. Russell’s film “Tombstone” and Costner’s “Wyatt Earp” were released roughly a year apart to varying receptions. Apparently, things got quite tense behind the scenes, with accusations that Costner, who reportedly has a shady side, and his talent agency tried to thwart Russell’s project, according to Entertainment Weekly. However, later interviews involving both actors prove that there’s actually no bad blood between them, suggesting that the perception of their relationship could have been overblown.
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“I love ‘Wyatt Earp’ I just love that movie,” Costner shared with GQ in May 2024. “We got into a level of competition with ‘Tombstone.’ A good friend said, ‘Look, we can postpone this movie, we don’t want to compete.’ And I said, ‘Look, I’m sure this writer, director, wants to make this movie. Let them.’ And then this kind of space race started, and I always regretted that there was this kind of weird competition.” He continued, “And it was a fun movie, ‘Tombstone,’ but it’s too bad it went the way it went.” Meanwhile, Russell was quite gracious when speaking about Costner to GQ. When discussing the people behind the scenes who, due to the films’ competing nature, were “not good guys to me,” Russell revealed that Costner wasn’t one of them. However, Russell did take a teeny, tiny jab at Costner when discussing the timeless, and quotable, dialogue featured in “Tombstone.”
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Unfortunately, their later team-up contributed to more reported tension.
Kevin Costner and Kurt Russell worked together in the early 2000s
Kevin Costner and Kurt Russell co-starred in 2001’s “3000 Miles to Graceland,” an action comedy revolving around Elvis Presley impersonators. And though it’s clear they weren’t co-stars who couldn’t stand each other, Costner and Russell were locked in a friendly competition behind the scenes. According to The Guardian, the co-stars both presented their film studio with their vision for the movie, although Costner’s version is what prevailed. “Kevin’s was more pure action,” a source shared with the publication. “Kurt’s was more character-oriented.” Ultimately, the movie was seen as a financial and critical failure.
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Despite the film’s glaring lack of critical reception, it has remained on the minds of fans for over two decades, even if they only convene to simply point out everything that’s wrong with it. “Saw this in the theater with my dad when new,” commented one fan on Reddit. “Watched it many times since and it will always have a special place in my heart.” They continued, “The most absurd thing though, out of all the absurd things, that I could never get past, is Ice T … And then he does his upside down spinny move (no spoilers) and I just can’t even being to accept that.” A second fan wrote, “I personally loved it. It’s not great by any objective measure, but it’s got likeable characters involved in crazy hijinks in the desert. It’s got heart and has some funny moments. And any movie gets bonus points for using Costner as a villain. He was always a good villain.”
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Of course, Costner and Russell’s rift is far from the only celebrity feud you’ve probably forgotten about.
