“Chuck Norris and Superman got into a fight, and the loser had to wear their underwear on the outside of their pants.” Hundreds of such jokes are littered all over the internet, proving that even though he might be the most one-dimensional action star who ever lived (Steven Seagal would disagree), fans adore him.
Chuck Norris is known as the guy you don’t mess with, and that’s because most of his movies remind us of this fact. He was like the Jason Statham of the ‘80s and ‘90s, playing the same kind of character every time yet never failing to leave audiences awed.The Oklahoma-born superstar isn’t just tough in movies either.
He is a black belt in Tang Soo Do, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and judo. Even better, he founded his one discipline: Chun Kuk Do. And if you see him in combat gear, you better believe it, because he is a United States Air Force vet.Still, Chuck has never been afraid of experimenting.
Like Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger, he has stepped out of his comfort zone a few times. For this article, we rewind to the early ‘80s when he starred in the sci-fi horror flick, Silent Rage. Interestingly, the experiment almost ruined his career.
Chuck Norris Faces Off Against a Genetically-Engineered Slasher Villain in ‘Silent Rage’
The ‘80s gave us some of the best slasher movies, and Chuck Norris somehow found himself in one of them. Filmed in a shadowy hue to accentuate the underlying terror, Silent Rage is instantly shuddering and unsettling. It begins most chillingly, with the deranged John Kirby (Brian Libby) slaughtering two members of a family that was hosting him.
Sheriff Daniel “Dan” Stevens (Norris) quickly springs into action, arresting the man, only for him to try and escape. When Kirby grabs a shotgun, the officers are left with no choice but to fire at him.
Later, two geneticists get Kirby’s body and figure they can experiment with it (mad scientists in movies always have the worst ideas). They have been working on a new formula that enables quick healing and offers the recipient super strength. Without caring about any potential consequences, they test their invasion on the killer’s body.
As expected, Kirby wakes up, mute and invulnerable. He escapes from the facility before tracking down the chief scientist and murdering him. After that, he goes on a killing spree around town.
And the shocking displays of barbarity aren’t just gratuitous: The villain exists to make a pertinent statement on the alarming degree to which ludicrous, mind-numbing violence has soaked society.
The film was directed by Michael Miller, whose 1976 hit, Jackson County Jail, is one of Quentin Tarantino’s favorites.
Here, he proved once again that he was equal to the dark material, infusing Joseph Draley’s script with a solemnity of purpose as well as a chilling heft.
Even though Silent Range doesn’t seem like a typical Chuck Norris movie, the director revealed that it was written with the actor in mind. Speaking to ComingSoon.net, he said:
“You don’t hire Chuck Norris not to do karate. It wasn’t like it was an old John Wayne script that they ended up giving to Chuck. He does his thing.
I think the idea was to try and broaden the audience in that it wasn’t a karate movie. In my mind, it was a Frankenstein movie. It was like Frankenstein meets Chuck.”
Norris sure does excellent work in the movie. However, one aspect of it proved controversial, causing his fans to vow to abandon him.
The Gore Was Hardly the Film’s Problem
What would make fans unhappy with Chuck Norris over Silent Rage? An easy guess would be the choice of genre. Up until that point, the actor’s supporters were only used to him doing martial arts films.
The new picture was a huge departure from his lane, but that wasn’t the problem. Fans didn’t like the fact that Chuck Norris was fornicating on screen.In the film, Sheriff Dan Matthau appears to be experiencing a new wave of adolescence, given the bounty of available and good-looking women in his jurisdiction.
Enter Alison (Toni Kaleem), the giggly sister of one of the scientists who doesn’t seem interested in romance – that is, until she meets the lawman-in-chief. Before we know it, she has gone all Bianca Censori and is making love to our hero.
Miller enriches this scene with his trademark angles and a splash of color. Watch how his camera glides over the contours of the characters’ bodies, or effortlessly dances between them as they converse.
Well, it’s a tame sequence by today’s standards, but fans were furious and fearful that the actor was remodeling himself as a morality-flouting provocateur.
Chuck Norris told The New York Times that he received tons of angry letters from fans, many threatening to never watch his movies again. Consequently, he quit doing such kinds of scenes.
“My audience doesn’t like me domestic. They want me to be a free spirit. . . . A lot of kids go to see my movies. They don’t usually like to see me in steamy stuff. I’m not the Richard Gere type, you know. The audience isn’t really coming to see me get into heavy love scenes. It’s not my image
Makes sense. However, in his ComingSoon.com interview, Miller says the flirting and lovemaking scene wasn’t even in the script. The actor improvised it. Naughty Chuck!
Chuck Norris Made a Promise to Fans Following the Controversy
Chuck Norris was lucky enough to not be subjected to the ‘80s version of cancelation. After the movie, he signed a three-picture deal with MGM (though he canceled it midway over control issues) before moving on to Orion Pictures.
Fans forgave him, and that’s partly because he kept to his promise. He never did another s3x scene after Silent Rage. The furthest he ever went was kissing, and that happened much later in Walker Texas Ranger.
Were fans justified in getting angry? What was the big deal when other popular action stars like Stallone and Schwarzenegger were frequently making love on screen? Well, as Norris himself put it, he has his audience, and they don’t want him doing that.
Jackie Chan and Liam Neeson are other perfect examples of action stars who aren’t expected to be anywhere near the bed unless they are sleeping.
Audiences cannot picture them unclasping brassieres, so there is going to be some outrage if they ever sign up for films that inquire into the rudiments of carnal desire.Watch Silent Rage, not for Naughty Chuck, but for the horror and plot. Also, watch out for that iconic roundhouse kick in the closing moments.
