Armageddon
For love. For honor. For mankind.
Armageddon (1998)
Budget
$140 000 000
Revenue
$553 799 566
Director
Scenario
Robert Roy Pool
Author
Composer
Producer
Actors
Bruce Willis
Harry S. Stamper
Billy Bob Thornton
Dan Truman
Ben Affleck
A.J. Frost
Liv Tyler
Grace Stamper
Will Patton
Chick
Steve Buscemi
Rockhound
William Fichtner
Willie Sharp
Owen Wilson
Oscar
Short description
Armageddon is a 1998 science fiction action film about a massive asteroid on a collision course with Earth. When NASA determines that the only viable option is to drill into the asteroid and destroy it from within using a nuclear device, the agency turns to Harry S. Stamper, a renowned oil driller. He agrees to lead the mission on the condition that he can bring his own crew, among them the headstrong A.J. Frost, whose relationship with Harry's daughter Grace has put him at odds with her father. The team undergoes training before launching into space, where they must land on the asteroid's surface and carry out the drilling before time runs out.
The film was directed by Michael Bay, the third of the fifteen features he has directed in chronological order, following The Rock in 1996 and preceding Pearl Harbor in 2001. Robert Roy Pool, Jonathan Hensleigh and Shane Salerno wrote the screenplay, and Jerry Bruckheimer, Michael Bay and Gale Anne Hurd produced. Bruce Willis plays Harry, with Billy Bob Thornton as NASA's Dan Truman, Ben Affleck as A.J., Liv Tyler as Grace, Will Patton as Chick and Steve Buscemi as Rockhound.
Made for 140 million dollars, Armageddon took in 554 million dollars worldwide, a strong return on its production cost. On IMDb it holds 6.7 out of 10 from 477,000 votes, and on TMDB 6.8 out of 10 from 8,847 votes. A film critics' rating of 5.3 out of 10 from 177 reviews places it below both audience scores, indicating a mixed critical response alongside steadier viewer approval.
What's left behind the scenes
- Liv Tyler auditioned for the film twice, but was only cast after a third attempt. The film was released on Liv Tyler's birthday (she turned 21).
- Michael Bay played a cameo role in the film – he played one of the operators of the Hubble telescope at NASA.
- Excerpts from the initial scenes of the film, showing small meteorites falling on New York and a panorama of destroyed Paris, were used in "Alien" (2001) for scenes depicting the bombardment of Earth from space by aliens (the meteorites "transform" into rockets).
- The gravity on the asteroid is almost Earth-like, which is impossible given its small mass.
- During the launch of the Space Shuttles in the film, the solid rocket boosters separate simultaneously with the external fuel tank – in reality, this tank should continue to fuel the three main oxygen-hydrogen engines on the Shuttle for another seven minutes.
- According to the filmmakers, the Space Shuttles are fueled by oxygen, to obtain which they flew to the Russian station "Mir." Strictly speaking, the fuel is both oxygen (oxidizer) and kerosene or hydrogen (fuel), so formally it is correct. However, liquid oxygen was never and could never have been on "Mir." And storing it in orbit for a long time is technically extremely difficult, especially in quantities sufficient to refuel the Shuttles.
- The astronauts stay on the asteroid thanks to some "low-thrust engines" which are shown in the film as propellers that cannot work in a vacuum. All drilling equipment is also equipped with such engines.
- There cannot be an atmosphere suitable for breathing on the asteroid. But an atmosphere sometimes appears: the drillers almost always drill in spacesuits with helmets. But in one scene, Harry is next to the drill with his helmet visor open. Furthermore, after the crash of the second shuttle, the remnants of the equipment burn quite normally, which cannot happen in the absence of an atmosphere.
- Filming took place from August 27, 1997 to January 29, 1998.
- The film's producers managed to convince NASA management to allow Michael Bay and his crew access to locations usually closed to filmmakers. These included, in particular, the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory with a huge indoor pool where astronauts practice operations in zero gravity, the launch pad that was discontinued after the Apollo 1 disaster in February 1967, and Edwards Air Force Base in California. The crew was even allowed to use two spacesuits worth $10 million each.
- According to Steve Buscemi, when he was offered the role he ultimately played, his character was described as a heroic geologist, and he immediately agreed because he was tired of playing scoundrels and villains. As soon as he agreed to the role, the character was changed, with alterations written into the script that made his character appear less noble and heroic.
- The launch of the shuttle was filmed on location. Filmmakers were allowed to place approximately sixteen cameras on site. The camera located on the launch pad was subjected to such external forces that all the bolts fell out of the lens holder, and the camera had to be returned to 'Panavision' as a box of parts (which they were able to reassemble).
- Billy Bob Thornton told Michael Bay that he saw his character in this light: he himself once dreamed of becoming an astronaut, but due to health problems, he was only suitable for some purely administrative position. Bay liked the idea, and the character played by Thornton was given a metal brace on his leg.
- Filmmakers were allowed to shoot directly on the launchpad where the Space Shuttle was already located. Permission was granted on the condition that no one would attempt to enter the Shuttle itself. Ben Affleck later admitted that he did briefly peek inside the spacecraft, after which he was chased away by a member of the maintenance crew.
- The film contains numerous errors, and the filmmakers were aware of some of them even during production. However, according to director Michael Bay, they deliberately chose not to correct them – for the sake of spectacle or for other reasons.
- The dog at the beginning of the film was specifically trained to tear apart toy Godzillas. Its filming cost $20,000 per day. The dolls were covered with a cardboard box to prevent the dog from attacking them prematurely.
- Michael Clarke Duncan was nearly replaced by another actor on the very first day of filming. He was overjoyed when he was cast in the role, but soon lost confidence, which affected his performance. Michael Bay and Bruce Willis had to pull him aside and tell him that they wanted to see the magnificent performance he had demonstrated during the auditions, which ultimately secured him the role; otherwise, they would have to find a replacement. After that, Duncan pulled himself together.
- The scenes on the offshore oil platform were filmed on a real oil rig near the coast of Texas. According to Michael Bay, filming on an oil rig is rare, but the 'Armageddon' crew was granted permission because they were filming a movie about oil rig workers saving the world.
- The original script lacked a romantic storyline between Ben Affleck and Liv Tyler's characters, instead focusing on Billy Bob Thornton's character's storyline. The romantic line was added to the script after the resounding success of James Cameron's 1997 blockbuster "Titanic" and its popularity with teenage girls. Scott Rosenberg wrote almost all of the romantic scenes, and they were filmed towards the end of the shooting period.
- The scene with William Fichtner holding a gun was added to add drama to the film. According to Michael Bay, it was not in the original script, and the Armed Forces would have objected to seeing a U.S. Air Force colonel threatening other characters with a weapon. After the scene was filmed and inserted into the film, Bay was ready to cut it if required by representatives of the Armed Forces after previews, but they did not request it and even expressed approval.
- According to Ben Affleck, the enormous NASA building is the largest open-air building (without a roof) in the world. It is so large that the air inside has to be cooled to prevent cloud formation and rainfall within the building. According to Michael Bay and Jerry Bruckheimer, it wasn't easy to convince NASA management to allow filmmakers to shoot and use real equipment and a test facility, but when they received approval from the US Air Force, many doors opened for them at NASA. For example, the film crew initially received a refusal in response to a request to use the pool where astronauts practice operations in zero gravity, but then permission was granted, but only to Willis and Affleck and only for 20 minutes in the pool.
- Filming inside the Lincoln Memorial in Washington was conducted without official permission. The police were somehow distracted, and Bay and the cinematographer slipped inside.
- When filming the destruction of Shanghai, it was originally planned to use models. Michael Bay envisioned that all of this would be shown from the perspective of a father and son on a boat. For the filming, the largest pavilion in Hollywood was built, the lake inside it was filled with water, a pier and other necessary scenery were constructed. And only after all this did Michael Bay, with his typical unpredictability, change his mind and decide to destroy the city with an explosion.
- The Gatling guns on each "Armadillo" vehicle were authentic, from World War II. The rate of fire of the guns is approximately 1,000 shots in 15 seconds.
- The scene with Ben Affleck and Liv Tyler before he hides in the shuttle hatch was filmed in two versions – one where Affleck's character sings to her, and one where he simply says goodbye. The first version of the farewell was used in the film. Screenwriter Scott Rosenberg (whose name is not listed in the credits) told Michael Bay that this scene would either win over the audience or completely lose them. He came up with the idea of Affleck singing. Willis said he also liked the idea, but at the time of filming he was absolutely sure the scene would be cut during editing.
- Ben Affleck agreed to participate in the filming with a firm intention to perform all the stunts himself. This desire waned early in the shooting process, when filming the space station, specifically when Affleck's character climbed up the ladder while a fireball rushed past him. The actor decided he wasn't that cool and preferred to leave the stunts to the stuntmen. However, Michael Bay occasionally managed to persuade Affleck to perform a stunt himself.
- According to Michael Bay, the most unsettling episode was about three weeks before filming began, when he was working with designers and costume artists on the spacesuits. When he saw what they had come up with, he described it as an 'Adidas tracksuit.' The spacesuit gloves turned out to be gardening gloves bought in a store, repainted gray. It turned out that the costume designer was French and had previously worked on films by Luc Besson.
- When Steve Buscemi’s character ‘loses it,’ the rest of the crew immobilizes him with tape, which is actually what NASA instructs astronauts to do in such cases.
- The idea to film the wedding of Ben Affleck and Liv Tyler’s characters with a handheld ‘Super 8’ camera came from Affleck, and it was his own camera. The episode with the cake throwing was improvised on the spot, and a significant portion of the cakes were thrown at director Michael Bay.
- The scene in which Bruce Willis’s character remotely says goodbye to Liv Tyler (who played his daughter) was filmed on the first day of shooting. While speaking to the camera, the actor was looking at pictures of his own daughters.
- The film's musical theme – "I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing" – was performed by Liv Tyler's father, Steven, as part of Aerosmith. This song held the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks.
- Bruce Willis joined the cast of the film after leaving the shooting of Lee Grant's romantic comedy "Broadway Brawler" (the film remained unfinished). The deal he made with Joe Roth, then head of "Disney", involved filming "Armageddon" and two subsequent films. These turned out to be M. Night Shyamalan's sci-fi thrillers "The Sixth Sense" (1999) and "Unbreakable" (2000).
- Early in the film's production, Michael Bay noticed that Ben Affleck's teeth looked like baby teeth in the already shot footage. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer once told him that during work on a certain film, he had given "one well-known star" new teeth. Following this, at Bay's direction, Affleck spent a week in the dentist's chair for 8 hours a day, resulting in his teeth looking as they do in the film. The new teeth cost approximately $20,000.
- The scene depicting the destruction of the "Independence" shuttle was filmed on the very first evening of shooting. Ben Affleck, Peter Stormare, and Michael Clarke Duncan, who were involved in the scene, were already on set and checking their spacesuits when Bruce Willis appeared, very nervous about having to put on a spacesuit. According to Bay, everything went wrong that night. While filming Affleck from a distance, he noticed the actor constantly bending over, as if looking for something on the ground. Finally, Bay couldn't take it anymore and asked what Affleck had lost. It turned out that the actor's spacesuit had some problems with oxygen supply, and he was looking for a rock to break the helmet.
- The film was shot simultaneously with Mimi Leder's sci-fi action film "Deep Impact" (1998). Michael Bay openly expressed disdain for the star status of Tea Leoni from Leder's film compared to Willis's status, as well as the plot of the rival film, claiming that "no gunfire compares to an asteroid."
- To catch up with the asteroid, the "Freedom" and "Independence" shuttles perform a gravity assist maneuver around the Moon, accelerating to 11.5 km/s (22500 miles per hour). However, according to the pilot, it becomes clear that the initial speed before the maneuver is about 14000 miles per hour (first cosmic velocity). This raises the question of how the shuttles even reached the Moon, as reaching a flight trajectory to it and escaping Earth orbit would have required them to initially develop a second cosmic velocity, meaning the same 11.5 km/s.
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