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regular-article-logo Tuesday, 07 May 2024

Watch Tom Cruise, Matt Dillon, Patrick Swayze’s 42-year-old audition tapes for The Outsiders; Francis Ford Coppola shares the video

The Godfather director recounted the auditions for the coming-of-age crime drama that has earned a cult following over the years

Agrima Tikader Calcutta Published 01.03.24, 05:03 PM
(Clockwise) Emilio Estevez, Patrick Swayze, Matt Dillon, Rob Lowe, Tom Cruise, C. Thomas Howell and Ralph Macchio.

(Clockwise) Emilio Estevez, Patrick Swayze, Matt Dillon, Rob Lowe, Tom Cruise, C. Thomas Howell and Ralph Macchio. IMDb

A young Tom Cruise uttered his lines before the camera and baby-faced Patrick Swayze, Diane Lane and Matt Dillon introduced themselves in a video of 42-year-old audition tapes shared by Francis Ford Coppola on Thursday.

The young actors, who would go on to become Hollywood A-listers subsequently, were auditioning for the Godfather director’s 1983 film The Outsiders, a coming-of-age crime drama that follows the conflict between two rival teenage gangs in rural Oklahoma.

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“42 years ago we cast ‘The Outsiders’ in a unique way. We had all the actors together on a soundstage and would alternate different actors reading for different roles,” wrote Coppola on Instagram alongside the video.

The filmmaker also recalled how the actors watched each other reading lines for different parts. “There emerged the natural respect and sense of colleagueship among them. The result worked beautifully and reminded me of my days as a camp counselor,” he concluded his post.

Beginning with Dillion, Macchio and Lane introducing themselves, the tapes show Lane’s reaction when she is further asked to talk about being in love. Tom Cruise was among a set of young actors who were told to repeat the same lines including the intriguing “Hop the 3:15 freight to Windrixvill.”

The Breakfast Club actor Anthony Michael Hall can be seen auditioning in the video for the role of Ponyboy Michael Curtis in the film, which would eventually go to Howell.

Several of The Outsiders actors reacted to the video in the comment section. Macchio, who played Johnny Cade in the movie, wrote, “These auditions and this film experience still inform me today. Thank you, Francis (and Susie).”

“Feels like this was just yesterday!” commented Rob Lowe, who played Sodapop Curtis in the film. Howell also appreciated all his fellow actors, “The people that came to these auditions… so many went on to have great careers. Amazing,” he commented.

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