It was supposed to be a grand epic film for John Wayne, as he played Genghis Khan, riding across deserts and leading armies. Instead, The Conqueror became one of the worst-reviewed films of the 1950s. Audiences laughed, critics had a field day reviewing the film, and even Wayne later regretted taking the role.
But the real damage went far beyond bad reviews or bruised pride. So many things went wrong with the cast of the film, and to this day, it is still regarded as one of Hollywood’s darkest and most disturbing tragedies.
‘The Conqueror’ was a massive flop
By the mid-1950s, John Wayne was already a Hollywood icon. He was popularly known for his roles in Westerns and war films, he represented the tough, all-American hero. So when he was cast as Genghis Khan in The Conqueror, people were confused. The role didn’t fit him, and even Wayne’s fans couldn’t understand the choice.
The film itself was a disaster. Wayne wore heavy makeup and spoke in a slow, unnatural voice that made the role even harder to believe. Although the movie had a big budget and was filmed in a dramatic desert location, it didn’t help. The Conqueror flopped at the box office and quickly became a punchline in Hollywood. Still, none of that compares to the real story unfolding behind the scenes.
Over 90 cast and crew members developed cancer
Filming for The Conqueror took place in St. George, Utah—a quiet town downwind of the Nevada Test Site, where the U.S. government had been testing nuclear bombs. At the time, few people understood the risks of radiation exposure. The cast and crew, including Wayne, director Dick Powell, and co-star Susan Hayward, worked in the open desert for weeks, often surrounded by dust and strong winds. To make matters worse, the producers shipped hundreds of tons of that radioactive dirt back to Hollywood for reshoots—bringing the danger with them.
In the years that followed, many of the people who worked on the film got sick. By 1980, over 90 cast and crew members had developed cancer. Among them were John Wayne, Powell, Hayward, and Pedro Armendáriz. Some died young, others suffered for years before passing. John Wayne was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1964. Although he survived the first round, the disease came back later and spread to his stomach. He died in 1979, aged 72. Health experts and journalists began to ask: Was the film cursed? Or were these just awful coincidences? Those questions were never really answered.