10 Famous Movie Scenes The Actors Almost Ruined
7. The Pirate Ship (The Goonies)
Towards the end of The Goonies, the titular gang of kids encounters an enormous pirate ship that's filled with treasure. The moment they see this ship for the first time is played as a big moment in the film, and it was also a big moment in real life too, one that actor Josh Brolin very nearly ruined thanks to a poorly-timed f-bomb.
The filming of this scene was the first time that the actors had seen the ship. The crew had purposefully kept it hidden from them so that their genuine first reactions would be caught on camera, something that helped enhance the authenticity of the moment. But Brolin's reaction was a bit too authentic, especially for a family-friendly film.
As the Goonies rose out of the water and turned to see the ship, Brolin - overwhelmed by the scale of it all - let out a huge "F*CK!" which prompted director Richard Donner, frustratingly, to yell cut. Brolin had ruined the take, and they had to do it again.
Fortunately though, Donner was able to get strong performances out of the kids in a later take, and in the movie, it genuinely does feel like it's their first time seeing the ship. So even though Brolin had messed up that first attempt, the scene, in the end, still worked very well.