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Steve Reeves may be more synonymous with Hercules than any other actor but Hercules Unchained(1959) was his second and last time playing the character. The list of actors who have played Hercules includes, but is not limited to, Reg Park, Kevin Sorbo, Ryan Gosling, Mark Forest, Dwayne Johnson, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lou Ferrigno. If you’re wondering under what circumstance Ryan Gosling played Hercules, he starred in a spinoff of Kevin Sorbo’s Hercules called Young Hercules.
By 1960, Reeves was reported to be the number one box office draw in 25 countries. When his popularity grew, so did his paycheck, which prompted producers to hire more bodybuilders to star in Hercules-like roles. Reeves movies were successful in the United States but according to ‘Quigley’s Top Ten Box-Office Champions’ the top U.S. box office draws in 1960 were:
- Doris Day
- Rock Hudson
- Gary Grant
- Elizabeth Taylor
- Debbie Reynolds
- Tony Curtis
- Sandra Dee
- Frank Sinatra
- Jack Lemmon
- John Wayne
Hercules Unchained’s cinematographer, Mario Bava, went on to direct Reeves in The Giant of Marathon and The White Warrior as well as Reg Park in Hercules in the Haunted World. Bava later became a notable director with such films as Planet of the Vampires and Danger: Diabolik.
Reeves co-star Sylvia Lopez, born Tatjana Bernt, died from leukemia the same year as Hercules Unchained’s release.
Watch Hercules Unchained here.
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