Overview

• Wes Anderson confirmed that Gene Hackman was furious about the flat-fee salary structure on The Royal Tenenbaums, a model Anderson adopted after Rushmore.
• Hackman initially resisted joining the film, with Anderson persuading him to participate despite his frustrations over pay and creative differences.
• Hackman was the only cast member to challenge the flat-fee model, which was accepted by other actors, including Bill Murray and Ben Stiller.
• Anderson revealed that Hackman left the production without saying goodbye and that they never communicated again after the film wrapped.
• Despite on-set tensions, Hackman later expressed appreciation for the final cut of the film, though he admitted he did not understand it during production.