Tombstonewas a film so successful that it managed to revitalize the western genre when it needed a significant boost of energy. Although subversive, revisionist westerns like and had both won the Academy Award for Best Picture, there were not very many films in the genre that harkened back to the populist escapism found within the “Golden Age of Hollywood.”Tombstone featured an incredible cast of some of the greatest living actors, but the film was anchored by the delightful friendship between Wyatt Earp (Kurt Russell) and Doc Holliday (Val Kilmer). While Kilmer’s performance is cited as being one of his best, Willem Dafoe was almost cast as Doc Holliday in Tombstone.

Casting Holliday was of the utmost importance in Tombstone, as he is a historical figure who had been depicted on screen several times before in such classics as and Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. While Earp is intended to be the embodiment of heroism and law enforcement, Holliday is a more complex character who decides to team up with other lawmen in order to defeat the outlaw “Curly" Bill Brocius (Powers Boothe). Despite the enthusiasm from both Russell and director, Dafoe was turned down because he was not a big enough star. Comparatively, Kilmer was coming off the success of a series of hits like and Top Gun, and was considered to be far more bankable as a leading man. Dafoe had drawn acclaim for his disturbing roles in and Wild at Heart, so Buena Vista Pictures may have been concerned about him dragging down the tone of Tombstone.