Clint Eastwood’s most successful movie might surprise many fans because it has nothing to do with his Westerns or his directorial efforts. Eastwood is best known for his Westerns, which he made his name making in the 1960s and 70s. However, he is also known for his directing career, of which Eastwood has five that were Oscar-nominated.
Yet Eastwood’s most successful movie commercially is not one of his Westerns, nor is it one of the movies he directed over his career. It also isn’t one of his Dirt Harry movies, although that is his most successful franchise. Instead, it is a movie he starred in with an orangutan named Clyde called Every Which Way but Loose.
Every Which Way But Loose Is Clint Eastwood’s Box Office Best (Based On Inflation)
Released in 1978, Any Which Way But Loose stars Clint Eastwood as Philo Beddoe, a truck driver who lives in California. Philo lives in his small house with his orangutan named Clyde, and he works as a bare-knuckle fighter to earn extra money on the side. While Eastwood’s Philo is the leading star, it is Clyde who steals the show.
Clyde is played by an orangutan named Manis, and he appeared in Every Which Way but Loose as what is technically the second star in what is ultimately a buddy comedy. There was also a sequel, but a different orangutan played Clyde there since Manis had grown too much between the movies.
While the movie wasn’t a popular release with people who wanted to see Clint Eastwood as a cowboy or a tough cop, it ended up a massive hit for mainstream audiences. In fact, it is the highest-grossing movie of his career after inflation. On a $5 million budget, Any Which Way but Loose made $104.3 million.
When adjusted for inflation, Every Which Way but Loose made the equivalent of $504.1 million, on a budget adjusted to $24.1 million. Nothing else that Clint Eastwood has starred in or directed came close to those numbers. Comparatively, the biggest Dirty Harry movie was Magnum Force, which only made $284 million after inflation.
Clint Eastwood Called His Orangutan Co-Star A ‘Natural Actor’
Clint Eastwood had a lot of love for Clyde, whom he called a “big baby” in an affectionate manner. In a rare comedic role, Eastwood seemed to get along better with his animal buddy than with many of his human co-stars over the years. In an interview, he said that he got along great with the orangutan.
“At first […] people advised me against it because orangutans are supposed to be tremendously strong, which they are, and it’s a wild animal,” Eastwood explained. However, he then went on to say that Manis was a “big baby” and if he “gave him half a beer” that he’s “as loose as anything around.” Of course, that last statement is controversial.
There were a lot of other controversies as well with Clyde in Every Which Way but Loose. The organization PETA made a documentary that claimed Manis was mistreated during the making of the movie. They also claimed he was beaten by his trainer and abused, although there was never proof to back up these claims.
There was also a book called Visions of Caliban by Dale Peterson and Jane Goodall that claims PETA was referring to the sequel, the orangutan, Buddha. The book also claims that the trainer beat this animal during filming as punishment for stealing food from craft services, although this has also been disputed.
Hollywood Has Been Trying To Remake The Clint Eastwood Movie Since 2017
While Every Which Way but Loose was Clint Eastwood’s most successful movie of all time, and it received a sequel that was also successful, there hasn’t been a Hollywood remake of it yet. However, that doesn’t mean that the studios haven’t been trying. As far back as 2017, there were attempts to make a new movie in the franchise.
According to Empire Magazine, Every Which Way but Loose director James Fargo was trying to get a new movie made, and he was working with Anthony Cohen to try to get it made. The article mentioned that the film was critically panned, but was such a success that it remains a cult classic, especially for Clint Eastwood fans.
“I have been interviewing directors for over a year and as soon as I watched Cohen’s film The Sex Trip … I knew instantly he was the right director for this picture.“
Fargo said at the time about working with Cohen to try to revive the property. However, while Fargo wanted it, there was doubt that Eastwood would even consider a cameo in a new movie.
It is also not as easy for Hollywood today to make movies that are like Every Which Way but Loose, where an animal is used for comedic efforts, especially considering what Clyde did in the original movie. There was a comedy film from 2024 called Brothers starring Josh Brolin and Peter Dinklage that used an orangutan for comic effect, though.
That said, there has been no news since 2017 about an Every Which Way but Loose remake, and with James Fargo at 87 and not having made a movie since 2011, it is not likely to come anytime soon, especially not with Clint Eastwood involved.
Sources: Slash Film, Empire Magazine
