Following his acting debut in the early 1980s, Kevin Costner had his big break when he portrayed a federal agent, Eliot Ness, in The Untouchables. He has since solidified his A-list status not only as an actor but also as a filmmaker, having two Oscars under his name.
And once he gained the status almost every Hollywood actor dreams of, he wanted to erase the things he regretted doing in the past. A report from the New York Daily News revealed that the Draft Day star tried to buy the first-ever film of his career in order to burn it off in a barbecue.
Kevin Costner Reportedly Wanted to Destroy His First Movie
The 1981 independent film Sizzle Beach, U.S.A., also known as Malibu Hot Summer became the first ever film Kevin Costner starred in. The movie follows three young women who team up to rent a beach house in Malibu. Costner portrayed the role of a stable owner who gets engaged in a romantic relationship with one of the women.
The movie was reportedly filmed in the late 70s but was not released until 1986, by which Costner had established himself as a well-known figure in the industry. A report from the New York Daily News states that the 68-year-old actor did not want the film to release with some of his best work.
It was around the time he was set to film the 1987 film The Untouchables when he tried to buy the rights for his first feature film, Malibu Hot Summer, to destroy the movie. “He hoped to host a barbecue where he’d burn its negative,” the report said.
It also stated that the movie’s producer, Eric Louzil, wanted to use the actor’s love scenes in another flick called Silent Fury. While the producer reportedly never got his hands on the scenes, Costner was also unable to get the rights, as the distributor, Troma Entertainment, refused to comply with Costner’s attempt to buy the rights.
Malibu Hot Summer Producer Wanted to Recycle Kevin Costner’s Scenes
The New York Daily News also revealed that the producer of Malibu Hot Summer wanted to use Kevin Costner’s love scenes in a movie titled Silent Fury. The report claims that Costner was not too comfortable while filming the scene. It has also been reported to be one of the reasons the actor wanted to buy the rights to the movie.
However, Troma Entertainment refused to license the scene out of respect for the movie star. “Kevin Costner did that scene for that particular movie,” said co-founder of Troma Entertainment before adding, “Out of deference to him, we’re not licensing that scene.”
However, producer Eric Louzil claimed that the production company was worried “about Kevin [Costner] suing them.” Despite their refusal, the producer was adamant about including the scenes in his movie along with unused Malibu Hot Summer footage that he claimed to have. Not much is available about the movie Louzil planned to include Costner’s scenes in.
To Costner’s dismay, Malibu Hot Summer remains accessible for rental on Amazon.