10 Movie Mistakes Directors Refused To Fix Because The Acting Was Too Good

1. Elizabeth Taylor's Head Injury - Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?

The Mistake

Mike Nichols' Oscar-winning 1966 drama revolves around the explosive marriage of George (Richard Burton) and Martha (Elizabeth Taylor), so it's not terribly surprising that the film called for the real-life married couple to get into some unpleasant confrontations.

The actors took this a little too far while shooting their famous argument outside the bar, however. Burton was scripted to push Taylor into their car, but he pushed his wife a little too hard, causing her head to ricochet off the vehicle for real.

The sound of her head colliding with the car wasn't added in post-production, and Taylor raising her hand to the back of her head was pure, injured instinct.

The Awesome Acting

Much like DiCaprio, however, Taylor was a pro and knew immediately how to pivot without killing the momentum of the take.

Taylor kept acting out the scene while working her discomfort into it: her glassy eyes and struggle to maintain her breath were real, which combined with the brilliantly barbed dialogue made for one hell of a performance.

Nichols clearly knew he had something special in the making, not rushing to call cut and ultimately deciding that this was the take to be used in the movie. For her suffering, Taylor ended up winning her second Best Actress Oscar. Worth it.