Tom Selleck loves westerns, and his latest one is a particular labor of love.
It stems from his friendship with the late novelist Louis L’Amour, whose story “Crossfire Trail” became one of the Emmy-winning actor’s pet projects. After years of developing it as a producer, he finally unveils the screen version Sunday on TNT (7 p.m.), with Selleck playing a drifter who finds new purpose upon promising a dying friend to help the latter’s widow (Virginia Madsen) keep her ranch out of the hands of a scheming land-owner (Mark Harmon).
Brad Johnson (“Ned Blessing”) appears as that fellow’s sinister enforcer, who eventually targets Selleck and his companions (portrayed by David O’Hara and Christian Kane). Wilford Brimley, Barry Corbin (“Northern Exposure”) and William Sanderson (“Newhart”) are also in the cast.
“It’s hard to get the rights to a Louis L’Amour book,” says Selleck, who also appeared in TV versions of the writer’s tales “The Shadow Riders” and “The Sacketts.” “His estate is very protective of his legacy, as is his widow. The only way I think we were able to get it is that I know her and I knew Louis, and he liked my work.”
That was just the start of the process for Selleck, who claims he “called in a lot of favors” in getting “Crossfire Trail” mounted. “We couldn’t afford a lot of the people who eventually became involved, even though had a pretty decent budget for a movie like this, but I think what we shot looks much more expensive. I’ve seen it three times on big screens, which is a thrill because it looks like any feature film you could ever want to see in that (dimension).”
One of those big-screen showings put Selleck in front of arguably the most critical audience he could have for “Crossfire Trail,” since it took place at the Cowboy Hall of Fame. “One of the guys who’s on the board turned around at the end and told me it was the best movie he’d seen since ‘Shane.’ We can’t use that in the ads, because I can’t remember exactly who said it, but it went over great.”
Pleased as he was by the comparison to “Shane,” Selleck allows, “It’s an impossible goal to reach. That film was a classic, but it doesn’t stop us from trying to get there. This is a traditional western, one that doesn’t have the vanity of trying to do (tried-and-true things) our own way. We wanted to do an homage to the genre in a very contemporary way.”
That’s why Selleck is glad “Crossfire Trail” reunites him with Simon Wincer, the Australian director who made “Lonesome Dove” and one of Selleck’s earlier westerns, 1990’s “Quigley Down Under.” The actor reflects, “He grew up as I did, watching American westerns, and he’s also a horseman. He knows how to film animals as well as people, and that’s not to be underrated. His camera work is brilliant. The climax of this plays out largely on horseback, and that’s typical Simon.”
Selleck’s relationship with L’Amour began during the filming of 1979’s “The Sacketts,” which also featured another western-adoring actor who grew close to the author, Sam Elliott. “We all enjoyed that experience so much,” Selleck reflects, “we said, ‘Let’s do this again.’ Because I was doing ‘Magnum, p.i.,’ I was in a position to get just about anything I wanted made, so Louis said he’d write another book with all of us in mind. That became ‘The Shadow Riders.’ I knew Louis pretty well, and he was a good friend and a great man.”
“Crossfire Trail” is quite a switch from Selleck’s previous project for TNT, last summer’s political comedy-drama “Running Mates.” That’s indicative of the variety he has continually seeks, and he recalls, “At the end of ‘Magnum,’ I told a lot of people, ‘You might be surprised by what my appetites really are.’ I’m very proud of all the movies I’ve done, because I felt I was always risking something and doing something new. I’m a trained actor, and I had 13 years to study before ‘Magnum,’ because no one was hiring me.”
That has made Selleck appreciate choice roles that fall into the “supporting” category, and he reaped big rewards from doing such a part as a gay TV newsman in the hit 1997 comedy “In & Out.” He says, “That was a terrific ensemble (Kevin Kline, Joan Cusack, Bob Newhart, etc.), and I would have been insane not to join it. Was it risky? I guess, but as my dad says, ‘Risk is the price you pay for opportunity.’ Every actor should get scared before starting a role, or he’s probably not challenging himself.”
