10 Times There Were Fistfights On Movie Sets
6. Rip Torn Vs. Norman Mailer
In his second bout within this list, Rip Torn took on writer and filmmaker Norman Mailer while the two were filming 1970's Maidstone.
Norman Mailer was a man whose writing career spanned 60 years, penning more than ten best-selling novels and picking up a Pulitzer Prize. Being married six times and fathering eight children, he courted controversy on many occasions, not least of all when he stabbed his second wife during an argument.
Maidstone was a passion project for Mailer, with him writing, directing and starring in the picture. Shooting an inordinate amount of film that took months to edit down to a workable length, Mailer's intention was to blur the lines between reality and fiction. And for one famous scene in particular, he got more than he bargained for.
By all accounts, Rip had been extremely sleep-deprived and was also using heavy drugs when he approaches Mailer's character with a hammer. He strikes him in the head with it and the two begin to roll around on the ground, with Rip's ear getting bitten and the two men openly bleeding.
Mailer's wife can be seen screaming at them to break up what turned into a very real fight.
Verdict: Mailer by DQ (illegal use of a weapon)