The Conqueror Was Filmed Downwind Of A Nuclear Weapons Test Site
Turner Classic MoviesJohn Wayne as Genghis Khan in the supposedly cursed film The Conqueror.
In the mid-1950s, John Wayne was one of the biggest actors in Hollywood, and he was set to star in what was sure to be a classic epic: 1956’s The Conqueror, which saw Wayne portray the 13th-century Mongol warlord Genghis Khan.
Instead, the film ended up being a flop. It is widely considered to be one of Wayne’s worst performances, and a smear on Hollywood’s so-called golden age.
But it isn’t for this reason that the film is remembered today. Rather, it is still brought up in conversation due to the circumstances surrounding its production, and the awful fallout for many of the cast and crew.
According to The Guardian, the film was shot downwind of a nuclear weapons testing facility in the Utah desert, and in the years since, many members of its cast and crew developed cancer, allegedly from exposure to nuclear radiation.
Of the 220 people involved with the production, 91 developed a range of cancers, and 46 died as a result — including John Wayne, his co-star Susan Hayward, and director Dick Powell. This number doesn’t account for the Native American extras in the film, either, so it’s likely that the actual number of casualties is even higher than what was reported.
