‘I felt you lost interest’: 35 years ago, Charlie Sheen felt betrayed when this great director refused to reconnect with him for a new film.

Crowned with four Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director, Platoon remains, 39 years after its release (which drew nearly 3 million viewers in France), one of the best war films ever made. But also one of the best ever devoted to the Vietnam War, an inexhaustible source of American cinema. Oliver Stone’s film was also a major entry in Charlie Sheen’s chaotic filmography.

The latter was recently a guest of the program In-depth with Graham BensingerIn which he covers his career, its ups and downs in almost 2 hours. And to commemorate the moment, he was voted out of the lead role in Born on the 4th of July, the second of Stone’s three Vietnam War films, which would have given Tom Cruise his first Oscar nomination.

We can clearly imagine Sheen’s frustration, given that he was absolutely flawless in Platoon and that he also played a major role in Wall Street.

“I felt you had no passion for it.”

In fact, Sheen had no idea Stone was changing course until Sheen’s brother, Emilio Estevez, called him one night (i.e. Entertainment Weekly). “He’s like, ‘Here, man. Are you sitting?” And I thought, somebody died, right? says Martin Sheen. “I said, no, what’s going on? He said, ‘Cruise is going to be born on the 4th of July.’ I love that Emilio thought I should sit down and get the news that he thought would blow my mind. I mean, what are we doing here? This is a movie.”

However, he still suffers a blow. “There was a betrayal factor. So I thought, ‘Okay, okay.’ You know, Oliver has been a fan of Tom for a long time. It’s not the same movie if Tom makes it or if I make it.”

According to Sheen, word of Cruise’s casting has since spread “had meetings” with Stone about the film, and the duo dined with the real Ron Kovich. “And then I didn’t hear from him again. We stopped talking about it, and I contacted Oliver and they told me he was in Cuba. It didn’t matter. It was 1988 or 1989. I was like, ‘Okay, tell him I’m looking for him.’

A little later, Martin Sheen was able to confront Oliver Stone about it when they were both in the same bar. “I was drunk enough that the subject finally came up. He said, ‘I just felt like you didn’t have any passion for it.’ I felt like you lost interest.” I said, “Well, I haven’t seen you. How can you tell how much I’ve lost passion or interest if we don’t talk about it anymore?”

“He should have won an Oscar.”

Say no evil to Tom Cruise from Martin Sheen. Quite the opposite. “It wasn’t that I was going to say anything bad about him, because then you watch the movie and you’re like, ‘Oh, well. ok He made it happen.” When someone takes a role and does it, you just go, ‘Sure,’ that’s obvious. You don’t sit there and analyze it and say, ‘I could have done better.’ This is a It’s brilliant and it should have won an Oscar.”

Stone actually had a hollow nose when he cast Cruise in his film. “I thought he was the best of his generation to play this role. He’s the ideal son of every American.” he said. “The journey he takes in the film is even more powerful when it’s portrayed by the Top Gun star. It’s not just Ron going through this terrible ordeal, it’s Tom Cruise — our perception of Tom Cruise.”

The actor was so convinced of the film that he readily agreed to a cut in his fee, which had increased after Top Gun. “I felt it was a very strong script and a great character.” he will say

“For me, the key to playing Ron Kovich is to never give up and to seek the truth. The film is not about a man in a wheelchair. It’s about a country that has become disabled. It was about moving beyond this man’s personal story; it’s about his personal triumph.”

Cruise’s commitment to the role will be admirable, flawless. “My first meeting surprised me” Kovic will say. “He came to my house with Oliver. I was surprised how well he understood everything I was going through. Tom was very clear with me: he said he would put his whole heart into the film and he would not let me down.”

It is not without irony that we learned last June that Tom Cruise will receive an honorary Oscar next November, the first of his career. A precious statue that he richly deserves for his excellent composition in Oliver Stone’s masterpiece.