20 facts you might not know about 'Armageddon'

Memorably, Armageddon and Deep Impact, two films about an asteroid heading toward Earth, were both released in 1998. They may have had a connection, at least according to Deep Impact screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin. To hear Rubin tell it, he was talking about the plot of the movie he was working on while at lunch with an executive at Disney. Soon thereafter, this executive went back to Disney and began production on Armageddon as a counter.

Armageddon was certainly not a singular vision. Five different screenwriters are credited, either for the screenplay or the story or for an “adaptation by” credit. One of those writers is J.J. Abrams. On top of that, though, four other writers reportedly worked on the script without receiving credit, including Chinatown scribe Robert Towne.

Willis was supposed to produce and star in a movie called Broadway Brawler for Disney. However, Willis was apparently immensely difficult to deal with on set — so much so the film just stopped being in production and was never finished. Willis was sued over his actions related to the film, so to avoid that, he made a deal with Disney. He would star in three movies for Disney at a greatly reduced salary. The first of those was Armageddon, which he received $3 million for, instead of his usual $20 million.

Buscemi was in a run of playing sleazeball characters, and he was looking for a change of pace. That’s why he signed on to play Rockhound in Armageddon. As it was written, he was a stand-up guy. After Buscemi was cast, though, they started rewriting the script to make the character, well, sleazier.

Prior to Armageddon, Duncan had only been in a few movies, with roles like Bodyguard and Bouncer. This was his chance for a breakout role in a big movie. Evidently, the pressure got to him a bit. Duncan reportedly was having trouble with his performance early on, until Bay and Willis pulled him aside and said that they might have to replace him if he couldn’t replicate the energy of his audition. Apparently, this was the kick in the pants Duncan needed, and he kept the role and had his breakout performance.

Armageddon ends with A.J. and Grace getting married, and their love story is a big part of the movie. That wasn’t the case in the original screenplay, though. A love story was written into the film after the success of Titanic, hoping to glean some of that audience.

Liv Tyler ended up in the role of Grace, but she wasn’t the only actress considered. Robin Wright, Denise Richards, and Milla Jovovich were all in the running as well. Tyler also reportedly turned the role down originally before decided to accept it.

Instead of building a set, the movie filmed on a real oil rig down near Galveston, Texas. This was practically unheard of, given that oil rigs are both expensive ventures and also dangerous places. Bay surmised that since the film features oil drillers as the heroes, it may have helped convince the folks in charge to let them on the rig.

The character of Max asks the question, “Have you ever seen Pulp Fiction?” in the movie. That means Quentin Tarantino’s film exists in the world of Armageddon, which may raise some questions. After all, both Willis and Buscemi are actually in Pulp Fiction.

The director makes an appearance as a NASA scientist, but he’s not the only cameo in the film. Real-life astronaut Shannon Lucid makes a brief background cameo in the movie as well.

Bay and Affleck both thought that Armageddon should end with A.J. and Grace’s wedding. It was Affleck, though, who suggested they shoot it with Super 8 cameras like it was a home movie. Affleck even had a Super 8 camera that was used for filming.

When Rockhound goes a bit batty in space, the crew wraps him in duct tape. This may seem like yet another Bay invention or a break from reality. In truth, though, it is indeed evidently NASA protocol to wrap erratic, dangerous crew members in duct tape in order to immobilize them.

So, why did they train oil drillers to be astronauts instead of training astronauts to be oil drillers? This is a fair question, and one Ben Affleck asked Bay while working on the movie. He recounted this on the DVD commentary track for Armageddon. Affleck then gave us Bay’s airtight reasoning: “He told me to shut the f—k up, so that was the end of that talk.”

Armageddon had a massive budget, even with Willis taking a salary cut. The movie cost $140 million, a massive number for a movie at that time. It all paid off, though. Armageddon made $201.6 million domestically and $553.7 million worldwide. This made the movie the highest-grossing film in the world, and the second-highest-grossing film in the United States. Yes, that means it made more than Deep Impact.

Armageddon may be a big action flick, but it’s in many ways defined by a power ballad. The soundtrack for the movie is laden with Aerosmith songs, including “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing,” which was written by Diane Warren but performed by the band. The soundtrack became the No. 1 album in the United States based on the strength of that single, which became Aerosmith’s first No. 1 hit in the U.S. as well.

Armageddon made more money than Deep Impact — and had a greater cultural impact. In most ways, it won the battle between the two asteroids films of 1998. However, Deep Impact did best Armageddon on one front. Bay’s movie is considered wildly scientifically inaccurate, and Deep Impact is credited with having more scientific accuracy.

Armageddon was a box-office giant, but critics were less kind. Gene Siskel gave it a thumbs up, but his longtime counterpart Roger Ebert hated it. In reviewing it, Ebert wrote, “The movie is an assault on the eyes, the ears, the brain, common sense and the human desire to be entertained.” He named it the worst movie of 1998, and would later include it on his list of the worst movies ever made.

In a 2013 interview with the Miami Herald, Bay actually “apologized” for Armageddon. He said they had to do the movie in only 16 weeks and that he would redo the entire third act if given a chance. After that, Bay tried to walk his statement back, even claiming he was misquoted, but audio of the interview provided by the interviewer proved that the quote was accurate.

In spite of its 38 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, Armageddon was included in the Criterion Collection’s list of DVD releases. Criterion is best noted for releasing arthouse films, critical darlings, and movies they consider “cinema at its finest.” Needless to say, Armageddon was an unexpected choice. For the essay paired with the release — a Criterion staple — the company chose film scholar Jeanine Basinger, who had taught Bay in college.

Armageddon appealed to a few different awards bases. It was nominated for six MTV Movie Awards, winning for Best Action Sequence and Best Movie Song. “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” was also nominated for an Oscar, along with three other nominations from the Academy. However, that song was also up for one of the seven Razzies Armageddon was up for. It won one of those, with Willis taking home Worst Actor.