Decades after Marilyn Monroe’s tragic death, the ‘Silence of the Lambs‘ actor leveled a shocking accusation from across the years.
Long before he played Hannibal Lecter or won two Oscars, Anthony Hopkins was just a young Welsh actor watching Hollywood from far away. He never met Monroe, and by the time she died under mysterious circumstances in August 1962, Hopkins had only just done his first stage performance. But years later, the usually quiet Sir Anthony said something stunning. He claimed Monroe was not just a troubled icon but a killer.
The Bold Accusation from Anthony Hopkins
According to Hopkins, Monroe’s victim was Clark Gable. The accusation resurfaced recently in entertainment archives and is one of the strangest footnotes in movie history. It all ties back to the famously difficult making of ‘The Misfits‘ in 1961. Arthur Miller wrote the film as a gift for his wife, Marilyn. It was supposed to be her big artistic win, but instead, it turned into a curse. It was Monroe’s last finished film and Gable’s last movie before he died.
Talking about the production, Hopkins did not hold back. “She was terrific, but she killed Clark Gable,” he said plainly.
Related: The Dark Reality of Marilyn Monroe’s On-Set Struggles That Turned Hollywood Against Its Biggest Star
The Cursed Production of ‘The Misfits’ and Clark Gable’s Death
Hopkins’ theory centered on the brutal shoot. Monroe was struggling badly with addiction and mental health problems. She was constantly late, sometimes showing up hours behind schedule. At times, she did not show up at all. In fact, production shut down completely for two weeks when Monroe went to the hospital to deal with her issues with alcohol and prescription drugs.
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Hopkins believed that Gable, the “King of Hollywood” who once made ‘Gone with the Wind‘ a cultural touchstone, got so fed up with the delays that it wrecked him physically. “He was so bored with her coming late and all the waiting, that he did the stunts himself at age 59,” Hopkins charged.
It’s true. Instead of waiting around for Monroe to get ready, Gable reportedly did his own tough drag-racing stunts in the burning Nevada desert heat.
Two days after ‘The Misfits‘ finished shooting, Gable had a major heart attack. He died ten days later.
The Truth Behind Anthony Hopkins’ Claims
For Hopkins, the chain of events was simple. Monroe’s behavior made Gable impatient, and that impatience led to his fatal heart attack.
It was not the first time Hopkins had made such a serious charge. He had earlier called director Otto Preminger a “murderer,” saying Preminger’s harsh style killed an actor. But the Monroe accusation stuck because of the sad irony of her career.
‘The Misfits‘ also starred Montgomery Clift, who was famously anxious, and Thelma Ritter. The set was full of emotional chaos. Gable famously brushed off the difficulty, saying, “I’ve been picture-making for 30 years. I don’t get butterflies. We just go in and do it.” However, the physical toll of the stunts and the 110-degree heat was brutal.
When pushed on his harsh judgment, Hopkins did soften a little. He admitted Monroe’s life was complicated. “She was a natural talent and got better,” he said. “But she almost went crazy and committed suicide.”
Film Historians Dispute The Monroe Accusation
Still, film historians mostly brush off the “murder” accusation. Yes, Monroe was famously late, and it was frustrating for everyone. But Gable was a heavy smoker who lived hard and had a known history of heart trouble. Also, even though Monroe was a mess on set, she was also scared of Gable and wanted to impress him. Her biographers say she was never mean on purpose. She was drowning.
When interviewers reminded Hopkins that Monroe’s death was probably caused by many things, including her own tragic overdose, he finally backed down. “OK, maybe not,” he admitted.
That is a rare moment of taking something back for the acting Knight. Both stars are long gone now, but the accusation remains a strange piece of Hollywood legend. It is a story about one legend blaming another for the death of a third, making a weird triangle of ghosts in the city of angels.
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