Why Jack Nicholson Slapped Faye Dunaway For Real On The Set Of Chinatown

Roman Polanski’s 1974 neo-noir “Chinatown” is so good that many lump it together with the great first-wave noir films of the 1940s. Polanski presented it as a throwback genre, but included all the modern style — and in-vogue cynicism — that the 1970s had to offer. Unusual for the genre, “Chinatown” also delved into the rather boring world of Los Angeles utility politics, and how merely diverting the water supply from one part of the city to another can reveal a web of corruption, murder, and sexual abuse. 

Jack Nicholson plays Jake Gittes, a too-smart-for-all-this private investigator who tends to make a living catching cheating spouses. Jake is confronted by a socialite named Evelyn Mulwray (Faye Dunaway), who points out that his tailing of her husband Hollis led to his death. Evelyn hires Jake to investigate Hollis’ death, assuming it to be a murder. From there, Jake discovers a tapestry of money and civic corruption he could never have predicted. Jake will eventually find that Evelyn and her father, Noah Cross (John Huston), are tangled up in all this, as is a mysterious girl that Evelyn is protecting. Moreso, Jakes finds that Evelyn has been victimized by her father in some way, and that she’s been hiding it. 

When Jake confronts Evelyn about her and her father’s secrets, she is still guarded. Who was that girl? Evelyn says it’s her daughter. Jake slaps her across the face, not believing her. Evelyn says it’s her sister. He slaps her again. My daughter. My sister. My daughter. What are you saying, Evelyn? 

If it looks like Jack Nicholson is actually slapping Faye Dunaway across the face, it’s because he was. According to the new Faye Dunaway documentary “Faye,” partially transcribed in People Magazine, Dunaway felt the scene wasn’t quite working with the actors engaged in the usual camera-safe “fake slaps.” Dunaway requested that Nicholson slap her for real. Reluctantly, Nicholson obliged. 

Dunaway recalled when Nicholson slapped her, and was very open about the fact that it was all her idea. She even had to talk Nicholson into it. She felt the scene would be more realistic, and certainly more intense, of the slap made contact. Dunaway said: 

“I said, finally, to Jack, ‘You’re going to have to slap me. Just go ahead and do it. […] He said, ‘You sure, Dread?’ And so I said, ‘Yeah.’ And so we did it again, and it worked.”

Why did Nicholson call Dunaway “Dread”? It seems that was his nickname for her on set: the Dreaded Dunaway. The nickname came about because of the tempestuous relationship Dunaway had with Polanski. It seems the two butted heads often, and were each set off by the other’s temper. In one bleak incident, a strand of Dunaway’s hair kept falling in her face during a crucial scene. To solve the problem, Polanski reportedly plucked the hairs in question without asking Dunaway. The actress was so infuriated by Polanski’s hair plucking that she cussed him out loudly in front of everyone and returned to her trailer. 

Dunaway was already referring to Polanski as “Roman the Terror,” so Nicholson jokingly extended the gag to include “the Dreaded Dunaway.” The actress recalls:

“That’s enough to set off the manic depression. […] It’s offensive. You don’t do that. So I went to my trailer. It was a whole situation. After that hair incident, […] Jack nicknamed me ‘Dread’ … ‘The Dreaded Dunaway’ was his name for me. He still, to this day, calls me ‘Dread.’ And I love it.”

Both Dunaway and Nicholson were nominated for Academy Awards for their performances in “Chinatown.” The film garnered 11 nominations in toto, although only won one (Robert Towne won for his screenplay). Dunaway has never expressed regret for having been slapped. For her, it made the scene work.