In the pantheon of Hollywood cinema, few images are as iconic as Audrey Hepburn in a little black dress, gazing into the jewelry store window on Fifth Avenue. Sixty-five years after the release of ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’, the film remains a shimmering masterpiece of romantic comedy. But behind the scenes of the 1961 classic, the champagne was flat.
Even though audiences fell for the sweet romance between Hepburn’s character, Holly Golightly, and George Peppard’s character Paul Varjak, the leading lady reportedly really did not like her co-star. The chemistry you see on screen was fake, and the set was full of clashing egos and method-acting madness. They even had a nickname for each other that cut deep.
Why Audrey Hepburn Called George Peppard “Pompous”
The movie started filming in October 1960. Right away, you could see how different the two stars were. Hepburn had just become a mother and was a total professional. She felt insecure about playing a flighty woman who was basically a call girl with a heart of gold. Instead, she relied on instinct and grace.
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Peppard was different. He studied “The Method,” an intense acting style where you really become the character. To Hepburn, who relied on her natural feel for things, Peppard’s approach felt fake and annoying. Turner Classic Movies points out that Peppard’s intense Method approach was “totally opposite from Hepburn’s own instinctive style.” He would overanalyze every scene so much that it made her uncomfortable.
Producer Richard Shepherd said it best. He had worked with Hepburn, and everyone loved her for being so kind. So her anger toward Peppard stood out. “I must say there wasn’t a human being that Audrey Hepburn didn’t have a kind word for except George Peppard,” Shepherd said in interviews. “She didn’t like him at all. She thought he was pompous.“
George Peppard Mocked Audrey Hepburn as “The Happy Nun”
The feeling was mutual. Peppard was frustrated by Hepburn’s natural talent and how the whole world loved her. Behind her back, he called her “The Happy Nun,” which was a mean joke about her Oscar-nominated role in ‘The Nun’s Story‘. He was making fun of her good-girl image, as if she were naive or preachy compared to his serious actor persona.
In case you missed it: Why Audrey Hepburn Thought She Was All Wrong for ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’
Peppard wasn’t just hard on Hepburn. Director Blake Edwards fought with him all the time. They nearly got into a physical fight on at least one occasion. Peppard refused to take direction and insisted on doing every scene his own way.
Patricia Neal Lost Her Best Lines to George Peppard’s Ego
Actress Patricia Neal played the rich “2E,” the older woman who keeps Peppard’s character. She had known Peppard before and was excited to work with him again, but she was shocked by how much he had changed. “It wasn’t long until I saw that since I last saw him, he had grown so cold and conceited,” Neal later wrote.
The worst fight was over the script. Neal’s character was written as a sharp, funny, powerful woman. However, Peppard worried that it made him look weak, so he fought to cut her best lines.
“I dominated him a lot more in the script and he didn’t want to be seen in that condition,” Neal explained. “He wanted things as he wanted them… I had fantastic lines, but they wrote my part down for gorgeous George.” Neal believed that if director Blake Edwards had just stood up to Peppard’s ego, the movie would have been much better.
How the ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s Feud Ended Decades Later
Even with all that tension, ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s‘ was a huge hit, and funny enough, all that friction between the two leads might have actually helped the movie. It created a real electric tension on screen that looked like longing. Hepburn got an Academy Award nomination for her performance, and the movie made her a fashion legend.
Some sources, years later, wrongly claimed the two became close friends, but the evidence from back then shows they were barely professional with each other. Still, time can soften old wounds. By the time Hepburn received the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the 1990 Golden Globes, Peppard was there to say something nice.
Looking back at the young woman he once made fun of by calling her a nun, Peppard showed a rare soft side. “I played opposite one of the screen’s most luminous and beautiful stars, Miss Audrey Hepburn,” he said from the stage. “You’re looking great, kid.“
For just a moment, all that old anger from the filming of Tiffany’s went away. It turned into a respectful nod between two people who had survived the golden age of Hollywood.
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