It was no secret that Marlon Brando was difficult to deal with and often made bizarre suggestions to "improve" the movies he worked on. Despite getting paid millions for doing little on Superman, he still risked the huge payday with his behavior and suggestions. Among the most bizarre was his thought that his character should be depicted as a toaster with him providing the voice. Luckily for the production, Brando was not a central actor and his insanity left the set when he did. Years later, the same would not be the case for The Island of Doctor Moreau.
The film was always going to be bizarre, but the presence of Brando made it more so. He insisted that the production hire a dwarf he got a kick out of as Dr. Moreau's assistant. He required that his character wear white paint on his face. He refused to wear pants so that the director wouldn't include his considerable girth on screen.
After viewing the on set insanity, actor Rob Morrow left the production, forcing the studio to hire David Thewlis for his role. The film's budget skyrocketed and co-star Val Kilmer grew impatient, ordering the producers to dramatically reduce his part. Despite taking the role to work with Marlon, Val regretted the decision after learning that Brando despised him and refused to do many scenes that required both of them.
A funny story told by cast and crew involves Marlon Brando not memorizing his lines. Brando insisted he be allowed to wear an earpiece with a stagehand feeding him the lines. Police radios often interfered with the device, leading Marlon to unwittingly announce robberies and police chases.
Audiences didn't know what to make of the film and it became a notorious box office disaster. Not even the lure of seeing Marlon Brando wearing kaftans was enough to attract them to theaters.
