Hollywood loves a good fight. Usually, it's publicists leaking "creative differences" or subtle shade thrown in a Vogue 73 Questions video. But when Bette Davis sat across from Johnny Carson on The Tonight Show in 1988, she didn't do subtle. She went for the jugular. When asked if there was anyone she’d never work with again, she didn't skip a beat.
"One million dollars," she rasped, "Faye Dunaway."
It was a moment that basically stopped time for viewers. You’ve got to understand the weight of that. Bette Davis was the ultimate professional of the Golden Age. She had famously feuded with Joan Crawford for decades, yet she still respected Crawford’s work ethic. But Dunaway? That was a different story. To Bette, Faye wasn't just a rival; she was the embodiment of everything wrong with the "new" Hollywood.
The Disaster in Denver
The bad blood didn't just appear out of thin air. It started back in 1976 on the set of a TV movie called The Disappearance of Aimee. Dunaway was playing the lead, evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson, and Davis played her mother. On paper, it was a prestige powerhouse. In reality, it was a nightmare in a hot Colorado tabernacle.
Bette Davis was old school. You show up early, you know your lines, and you respect the crew. Faye Dunaway? She was "The Method" incarnate, and apparently, that Method involved making everyone wait for hours.
There’s this specific story Davis used to tell. They were filming in Denver with thousands of extras. It was blistering hot. The crowd was getting restless, and Dunaway was nowhere to be found. Instead of sitting in her trailer seething (well, she was seething, but she was productive), Davis actually went out and entertained the extras herself. She told stories, she did bits—basically kept a riot from breaking out because the lead actress was late. Again.
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When Dunaway finally showed up, Davis claimed she didn't even know her lines. For a woman like Bette, who lived and breathed the craft, that was the ultimate sin. You can be a diva if you’re prepared. If you’re a diva and you’re lazy? Bette had no time for you.
Why Bette Davis on Faye Dunaway matters more than the Crawford feud
We always talk about What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? and the Pepsi machines and the Oscars. But Bette actually defended Joan Crawford after Joan died. When Crawford’s daughter released Mommie Dearest, Bette was disgusted. She called it "detestable." She respected Crawford because, at the end of the day, Joan was a "pro."
She never gave that courtesy to Dunaway.
Honestly, the Bette Davis on Faye Dunaway beef was about the death of a certain kind of Hollywood etiquette. Bette saw herself as a soldier for the studios. You worked until you dropped. Dunaway represented the 1970s ego—the idea that the artist’s "process" or "mood" was more important than the production’s budget or the crew’s time.
What exactly did Bette say?
If you go back and watch the tapes, Bette’s language is incredibly sharp. She didn't just call Faye difficult. She called her "totally impossible." She told Carson that everyone who sat in that guest chair would tell him the same thing if they were being honest.
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- The Inconsideration: Davis loathed how Dunaway treated the "little people."
- The Lateness: Hours of waiting in the heat.
- The Lack of Preparation: Not knowing lines after making the production wait.
- The "Million Dollar" Rule: Bette literally meant it—there was no price high enough to make her share a frame with Dunaway again.
The "Mommie Dearest" Connection
There is a delicious irony in all of this. A few years after their disastrous collaboration, Faye Dunaway went on to play Bette's greatest rival, Joan Crawford, in Mommie Dearest.
Bette hated the movie. She thought it was a hatchet job. But more than that, she probably saw it as Faye Dunaway playing a caricature of the "difficult actress" that Bette felt Faye actually was in real life. It’s like a hall of mirrors of Hollywood resentment.
James Woods, who was also in The Disappearance of Aimee, later backed Bette up. He mentioned that Dunaway was rude and even threw something at him once because he ad-libbed a line. He famously said that if Bette Davis—a legend—could be nice to people, then Faye Dunaway had no excuse.
The Long-Term Impact on Dunaway's Reputation
For a long time, Faye’s talent outweighed the stories. She was incredible in Network and Chinatown. But Bette’s public dragging of her in the late 80s cemented a narrative that Faye has never quite shaken. Even in 2019, Dunaway was fired from the Broadway-bound play Tea at Five for allegedly creating a hostile environment.
It makes you think: Was Bette just being a cranky veteran, or was she a canary in the coal mine?
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Bette lived to be 81, and she spent her final years being brutally honest. She didn't have anything to lose. When she spoke about Faye, she wasn't trying to start a "feud" for PR. She was issuing a warning. She believed that the privilege of being a movie star came with a debt of professional conduct.
What we can learn from the Bette vs. Faye saga
Looking back at the Bette Davis on Faye Dunaway chronicles, it's not just about two actresses hating each other. It’s a lesson in professional reputation. You can be the most talented person in the room—and Faye Dunaway was, at one point, arguably the best actress of her generation—but if you treat people like they’re beneath you, that becomes your legacy.
Bette Davis is remembered as a "tough broad," but one who showed up. Faye Dunaway, despite an Oscar and a resume of classics, is often remembered for the trash cans and the lateness.
Your takeaway for the workplace (Hollywood or otherwise):
- Preparation is Respect: If you aren't prepared, you're telling everyone else their time doesn't matter.
- Reputation is a Slow Burn: People might put up with "impossible" behavior when you're at the top, but they will remember it the second you aren't.
- The "Little People" Matter: Bette’s biggest gripe was how Faye treated the extras and the crew. How you treat those who can't do anything for you says everything.
If you're ever tempted to pull a diva move, just imagine Bette Davis sitting across from a late-night host thirty years from now, taking a long drag of a cigarette, and saying your name with a look of pure, unadulterated "nope."
Next Steps for the Film Buff:
If you want to see the "electricity" (or the literal hatred) for yourself, track down a copy of The Disappearance of Aimee. It’s a fascinating watch specifically because you know they can’t stand each other. After that, find the 1988 Carson interview on YouTube. The way Bette says "Miss Dunaway" is a masterclass in vocal shade that no modern actress has yet to master.