From Leo the Lion to 'Beast' A Brief History of Big Cats on the Big Screen

With the new thriller, Beast, starring Idris Elba, in theaters now, it’s a good time to reflect on the legacy of big cats in big movies. Lions and Tigers are dangerous wild animals, unpredictable and deadly. And yet, this has not stopped Hollywood from wanting to capture the big cats for the big screen. In fact, Hollywood history is littered with stories of Lions and Tigers being Lions and Tigers on movie sets, endangering members of the cast and crew. Some of the stories are of unbelievable neglect while others can be attributed to severe stupidity.

Here’s a look at Big Cats on the Big Screen

Leo the Lion

The history of Big Cats on the Big Screen truly begins with the original big cat, Leo the Lion, from the legendary MGM logo. Leo’s remarkable roar has been at the front of MGM pictures since sound recordings became part of the movies in 1927. Since 1927 7 different Lions have played the role of Leo though only one of the lions was actually named Leo. That happens to be the last MGM Lion chosen in 1957. That same logo remains a staple of MGM productions through today though a CGI version of Leo is now the predominant image.

Thankfully, Leo the Lion had no notable instances of endangering anyone at MGM. However, history tells the story of Jackie the Lion, who portrayed Leo the Lion from 1915 to her death in 1935, suffered a great deal for MGM’s art. During the 1920s to promote MGM films, Jackie was sent around the country on promotional tours. In that time, Jackie survived two trainwrecks, a hurricane, and an explosion.

Most famously, in a 1927 publicity stunt, MGM hired a man named Martin Jensen to fly Leo/Jackie across the country from San Diego to New York. The modified plane had a pilot seat and a large, open lion cage. The plane left San Diego and crashed hours later in Arizona due to being overweight. Both Jensen and Leo survived and after Jensen walked for hours to get help, with Leo thankfully safely caged, he was able to contact MGM for help. Naturally, the first question from MGM execs was “How’s the Lion?”

Napoleon and Samantha (1972)

Here’s a weird artifact from the vaults of Walt Disney. Did you know that Jodie Foster was nearly killed by a lion on the set of the movie Napoleon and Samantha? It’s true. Napoleon and Samantha was a 1972 adventure starring a then 8 year old Jodie Foster and Johnny Whitaker from TV’s Family Affair. The two kids and a lion named Major, a gift from a former circus clown, go into the woods in Oregon to try and find a young man played by Michael Douglas.

In the midst of the journey through the woods a scene called for Jodie Foster’s Samantha to walk several feet in front of Major the Tiger. According to Foster’s own recollection, she wasn’t walking fast enough for Major who lunged at her from behind, capturing her in his powerful jaws as crew members ran for their lives. Major’s trainer had held Major only by a leash made of fishing wire, used so that it would be less noticeable on screen. Thankfully, Foster only suffered cuts and bruises from the incident along with a lifelong fear of cats. That said, this being the 1970s, she barely missed a moment of shooting and the film was finished and released in 1972.

Roar (1981)

Of course, nearly killing one movie star is a heck of a story but how about nearly killing a family of movie stars including Melanie Griffith and Tippi Hedren? 1981’s Roar nearly did just that. The film, created and directed by Hedren’s then husband Noel Marshall and starring Hedren, her daughter, Melanie Griffith, and two of her three adopted sons, along with Marshall himself, is considered the single most dangerous film set in modern movie history. Only the multiple deaths of extras on the set of the Michael Curtiz directed 1928 feature Noah’s Ark can be considered more dangerous than Roar.

By some accounts, more than 70 people, including each member of the cast, were attacked by their Tiger co-stars. This despite the fact that the tigers had been purchased and raised by Marshall and Hedren and trained specifically for the film shoot over a five year period from 1975 to 1980. Even with having raised their family with the big cats, the set remained wildly unpredictable and dangerous. The premise had the family living in harmony with Tigers who roamed the halls of their home and cuddled with the family in the living rooms and bedrooms. These were terribly stupid ideas.

Among the notable, high profile injuries, Melanie Griffith was attacked by a lioness and nearly lost an eye. Tippi Hedren was attacked by not one but two different animals on set. Her first injury came from an elephant named Tembo who picked her up and dropped her, breaking her ankle, an injury that led to her contracting gangrene. Unwilling to give up on the project, Hedren next found herself attacked by a lion named Cherries. The lion bit Hedren on the head with its teeth scratching her skull.

Hedren was downright lucky compared to cinematographer, and future blockbuster director, Jan De Bont. Attempting to film the film lions from beneath a blue tarp, De Bont was found by Cherries the Lion who proceeded to scalp De Bont, tearing off the top layer of skin from his skull. Ever the hard worker, De Bont received 220 stitches and went back to work. I guess it could have been worse, he could have been like assistant director Doron Kauper who was attacked by a lion that bit his throat and head before tearing off one of his ears. Kauper underwent four and a half hours of emergency surgery and never returned to the film. He was joined by 20 other crew members who left either after or before their own injuries.

Weirdly, director Noel Marshall claims the highest injury count among those who’ve shared the legend of Roar. Marshall claims that more than 100 members of the cast and crew suffered some sort of injury while making Roar. Marshall himself was nearly killed on the set after suffering more than 11 bite injuries to his face, chest and hands. The injury to his hand saw a tiger bite completely through the hand and nearly lead to an amputation of Marshall’s arm after he suffered blood poisoning. Oh, and gangrene, just like his wife, Tippi Hedren, failing to make a timely trip to the hospital led to gangrene from one of Marshall’s many, many injuries.

For some reason, Roar is currently available to stream for free on YouTube. As for the new movie, Beast, starring Idris Elba. CGI trickery helped to assure that neither human or big cat were harmed in the making of the movie. The only harm may come to Idris Elba's box office credentials if Beast doesn't kill at the box office.