Dancing With Wolves: Kevin Costner's start

By 1990, Kevin Costner was a major movie star and a huge draw at the box office. But a movie producerand director? That was new for him.

Costner’s debut as a producer and director was “Dances With Wolves,” which went into limited release on Nov. 9, 1990 — 35 years ago Sunday.

The film would be nominated for 12 Academy Awards, would win seven — including Best Picture and Best Director for Costner.

First A Script And Then A Novel

After he served a hitch with the Air Force, Michael Blake wanted so badly to become a Hollywood scriptwriter. He made only one sale, though: “Stacy’s Knights” in 1983, which starred Kevin Costner.

He continued to write and struggled to make a living. He slept in his car and couch surfed — including on Costner’s couch. At one point, Blake showed his latest speculative script, “Dances With Wolves,” to Costner.

Costner loved it but realized it would need more eyeballs in order to sell. He suggested Blake turn it into a novel, which might make it an easier sell to movie studios.

Blake was rejected 30 times before he finally found a small publisher that would issue the book as a paperback. The book sold well. Costner then turned around and bought the film rights to the book himself.

“Dances With Wolves” by Michael Blake was first published as a paperback in 1988.

Costner needed studio backing to make the film. But westerns were unpopular among the major Hollywood studios — especially after the spectacular 1980 failure of “Heaven’s Gate.” Executives were also frightened by the length of the script and, therefore, what they feared such a production might cost.

Finally, Orion Pictures — already $500 million in debt — agreed to foot the $18 million budget for “Dances With Wolves.” As costs piled up, Costner would add $3 million out of his own pocket. Hollywood gossip began referring to the project as “Kevin’s Gate.”

Costner also needed a director. Everyone he spoke two wanted to make significant changes or cuts to the story. Costner was displeased with this, so he made the decision to direct the film himself, as well as star in it.

Costner originally planned to shoot his picture at Grand Teton National Park, but the National Park Service took issue with where Costner wanted to build his temporary sets. After just one week of filming, Costner got fed up with nitpicking and moved the production to a location near Pierre and Rapid City, South Dakota.

“Dances With Wolves” would open in limited release on Nov. 9, 1990 and would go into wide release two weeks later. It would earn $184.2 million domestically and $424.2 million worldwide. It would be nominated for 12 Academy Awards and would win seven. It became the second Western to win the Oscar for Best Picture, after “Cimarron” in 1931.

A delighted Blake proposed a sequel that would pick up his protagonist’s story 11 years later. He published a sequel novel — “The Holy Road” — in 2001 but a movie deal never materialized. He was working on a third “Dances With Wolves” novel when he died in 2015.

Costner's Debut As A Director

While critics praised the film for its handling of Indigenous peoples, some mocked the fact that much of the movie used Lakota language with English subtitles. A woman was hired to translate and coach the actors in speaking Lakota, but Lakota includes male-gendered and female-gendered language. Native American actor Russell Means said the dialogue made him laugh.

The stunning buffalo hunt scene required a herd of 3,500 buffalo, 24 bareback riders, 150 extras, 20 animal wranglers, 25 fake buffalo, 10 pickup trucks, seven cameras and a helicopter. It took eight days to film. Two domesticated buffalo were used in the film — both were borrowed from musician Neil Young. The skinned, dead buffalo was, in fact, made of paper maché.

The wolf that “befriends” Costner’s character, Two Socks, was played by two wolves: a male named Buck and a female, Teddy. Only one had two white paws. The other had to have paws painted white to match. Neither wolf was particularly cooperative during production. Costner and his co-producer, Jim Wilson, would howl at the wolves to encourage them to howl back.

Costner did most of his own riding, bareback riding and shooting in the picture. To make this film happen, Costner had to turn down roles in “The Bonfire of the Vanities,” “Dick Tracy,” “The Hunt for Red October” and “Presumed Innocent.” The Lakota Nation was so happy with the film it adopted Costner as an honorary member.

Costner's Success Behind The Camera