Sadly, this week marks four years since Bill Paxton's untimely death at the age of just 61. I remember reading the news on the BBC website and feeling that horrible gut-punch sensation. I'd never met the man but he'd made such an impact on me that I felt real genuine sorrow at his passing. I know it was the same for millions of others who had enjoyed his work over the years.
Like Michael, he was an actor I was ALWAYS excited to see. His performances were memorable even when the movie itself wasn't. His apparent real-life exuberance was there to see on screen which gave his characters honesty whether he was fighting an alien, a predator or being a sleazy used car dealer. That created a likeability that could ingratiate him with any audience. Special effects blockbusters like Twister don't typically give their heroes much depth and personality but Bill managed to make you genuinely care about more than just the pretty CGI.
Bill was not only a talented actor but also was a great director too, if you've never seen Frailty then seriously, go and watch it now! I'm just really sad we didn't get to see more of his work behind the camera.
Michael and Bill appeared together in five movies over ten years during the 1980s and 1990s. Michael has talked fondly in interviews about his friendship with Bill, including recently in an interview with the Hollywood Reporter: "When Bill entered a room, you knew he was in the room. He was full of joy. He was upbeat... I never heard Bill say a bad word about anybody. We did five films together. When you count them all up... that's about a year [of shooting]."
Those five movies were as follows:
1) The Lords of Discipline (1983)
Their first appearance together was in The Lords of Discipline. I'm long overdue a re-watch as this is an often overlooked gem of a movie from Quadrophenia (and K2) director Franc Roddam.
There is nothing redeemable about the characters they play and it's a difficult watch at times but that's testament to how well they play their roles. On a sweeter note, I believe it was whilst shooting this movie in London that Bill met his wife on a bus.
2) The Terminator (1984)
Ok, so for me, The Terminator will always be the movie I fell in love with Michael or Kyle Reese to be more precise, however Bill steals his scene right at the start as the spiky blue-haired punk complete with tooth gap. Sadly he's killed off within the first six minutes, before Kyle even makes it to 1984, but not before teaching the Terminator the phrase "fuck you asshole" which he repeats later in the movie in a very memorable scene.
(Side Note - it was whilst I was getting this screencap of Bill that I realised just how much you can see Arnold's penis dangling in the wind on the Blu-ray version of The Terminator - I don't remember that being quite so prominent on VHS!)
3) Aliens (1986)
Arguably their most famous team-up was as Private Hudson and Corporal Hicks in Aliens. So many quotable lines in this film and 70% of them belong to Bill. I also think it's Hudson's story that resonates most with the audience. Starting as the wise-ass that you wish would shut up, you slowly see that bravado wash away to be left with this scared boy who doesn't want to die however when his time comes he goes out fighting. Often loud, comic performances are overlooked but Bill nails it in Aliens and reminds us we don't have to be the cool, calm dude to be a hero.
I've always thought the natural rapport of the marines played such a massive part in making this movie as good as it was and I got the impression there was a lot of fun going on after work with these guys though perhaps not stories that will ever get told!
4) Navy Seals (1990)
Navy Seals has several problems which I've touched on in more detail here but one of the major issues for me is the complete lack of Bill in this movie. If you've got Bill Paxton in your movie, use him! Bill plays Dane or "God" the bad-ass sniper, rocking a delightful 'tache and a thermal sniper rifle that can magically see through walls! In my opinion this was the weakest of the Biehn/Bill team-ups.
5) Tombstone (1993)
Their final appearance together was in the movie Tombstone. We don't really do westerns in the UK but this one, whilst not historically accurate, really is an enjoyable movie. Unfortunately, Bill and Michael don't have a huge lot to do with each other here as they're on opposite sides but it's still great to see them share the screen one more time. It's another movie where Bill feels a little underused though with that insane cast, I think you could probably make that argument for pretty much everyone in it.
Bonus: Martini Ranch (1986)
Bill was also in a brilliant 1980s new wave synth band named Martini Ranch alongside Andrew Todd Rosenthal. Michael makes a blink and you miss it cameo in the band's music video for the song How Can The Labouring Man Find Time For Self Culture at the 4:31 mark.
If you've not heard Martini Ranch before, check out their album Holy Cow. It's an enjoyable, synth-pop album with catchy, sing-along choruses. It's also worth looking at the James Cameron directed follow up music video Reach which features a ton of Hollywood cameos.
The Ones That Got Away
Sadly Michael turned down the role of Jesse Hooker in the cult vampire movie Near Dark (1987) which you can see him discuss here. Instead, the part went to Lance Henriksen who was brilliant so it's not all bad but I would have loved to have seen Michael in that movie.
Michael also confirmed in an interview with MovieWeb that he was up for a role in Bill's TV series Big Love (2006) which instead went to Brian Kerwin. I'll admit I never saw Big Love though I would have been all over it had Michael signed on.
It's disappointing we didn't get any more Michael and Bill team-ups beyond 1993; it feels like there were so many missed opportunities. I am so grateful however that Bill Paxton leaves behind a treasure trove of incredible characters and iconic lines that will be loved for generations to come. I haven't even mentioned the likes of A Simple Plan, Apollo 13, Nightcrawler and Weird Science; his filmography is packed with quality. There's no doubt about it; Bill Paxton, you were fucking fantastic!
If you have a favourite Bill movie or character line I'd love to hear it. Please share it in the comments below.
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