In 1978, Robert Duvall turned down a major role. But instead, he got to work with Laurence Olivier
Robert Duvall chose to appear in the 1978 film *The Betsy* so he could work with Laurence Olivier, turning down a part in *The Black Stallion*. The choice gave the rising actor the chance to learn from one of the performers he most admired.
In *The Betsy*, Olivier played an ageing, wealthy patriarch and Duvall his ambitious grandson. Duvall later said he might have been better off taking *The Black Stallion*, where Mickey Rooney performed the role, but remembered Olivier as an interesting man with great stories. The following year, Duvall appeared in *Apocalypse Now*.
- Duvall turned down *The Black Stallion* to work with Olivier.
- They appeared together in 1978’s *The Betsy*.
- Duvall later wondered if he should have chosen differently.