The iconic Vietnam War film Apocalypse Now (1979) captures daring feats and fearless acts onscreen, but, behind the scenes, the adventure was just as intense. Emilio Estevez shared that, at just 14 years old, he nearly drowned in quicksand while on location in the Philippines. Thankfully, Laurence Fishburne stepped in and saved him, turning the real-life incident into a moment of true heroism.
Apocalypse Now (1979)
Filming for Apocalypse Now kicked off on March 20, 1976, in the Philippines, under the direction of Francis Ford Coppola. While critics initially had mixed reactions, it went on to earn an impressive eight Academy Award nominations, winning for Best Sound and Cinematography. Today, it’s celebrated as one of the greatest films in cinema history, and it’s especially revered as a standout among war movies – it even earned a place in the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry.
Set during the Vietnam War, Apocalypse Now follows a covert mission to take out Col. Walter Kurtz (Marlon Brando). Alongside a star-studded cast, a young Laurence Fishburne plays the role of Gunner’s Mate 3rd Class Tyrone “Mr. Clean” Miller. Martin Sheen, the father of Emilio Estevez, stars as Capt. Benjamin Willard, the character charged with taking down Brando’s enigmatic Kurtz.
Emilio Estevez was stuck in quicksand
While not part of the cast, Emilio Estevez joined his father, along with the rest of their family, on a trip to the Philippines for the filming of Apocalypse Now. This was especially important to Sheen, as he had a young family during the early years of his career.
“My folks believed that for the family to actually stay together, we had to stay together, and that meant traveling,” Estevez stated during a 2023 interview on The Jennifer Hudson Show (2022-present). “He had it in his deal that wherever he went to work, we went with him – whether we liked it or not.”
Luckily for Estevez, he found a way to pass the time by bonding with Laurence Fishburne, who was also 14 years old at the time. The two had only known each other a few days when they decided to stir up some mischief. One day, the duo found a small boat and decided to take it out on the water. However, they soon realized things weren’t going quite as planned.
Emilio Estevez is forever thankful for Laurence Fishburne
Emilio Estevez explained what occurred next. “We were out on this boat together and we started getting too close to the shore and I said, ‘Well let me jump out, I’ll push us off shore.’ I jumped out and it was quicksand mud and I was just sinking,” he said. “I saw Fishburne looking at me just saying, ‘Grab my hand!’ He pulled me back up.”
Through his quick thinking, Laurence Fishburne managed to pull Estevez back into the boat just in time, preventing things from taking a dangerous turn. According to the latter, the pair have “bonded ever since” – understandable, given the situation.
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The best part of the story might just be that, in true 14-year-old style, neither of the boys told Martin Sheen what happened. This may have been because the actor was already facing intense challenges on set – including suffering a heart attack during filming! Nonetheless, the two did eventually fess up to what happened, prompting Sheen to thank Fishburne “for saving my son’s life.”