The 5 Most Expensive Sword Fights in Movie History
The sword fight is the oldest and most basic form of human combat. Dating back to the Bronze Age, swords have played a pivotal role in countless battles and duels. They were an integral part of our martial history, and they will always hold a place in our hearts. Swords represent strength and honor, which is why they’re still so closely tied to our heroes.
That’s probably why filmmakers love sword fights so much. They’re epic, show-stopping displays of skill that often stand as the climax of a film. Like gunfights or car chases, sword fights are a time-tested way to get butts in seats, but watching two people hack away at each other with sharpened metal blades can be extremely costly for production companies.
We set out to find out which movie fights were the most expensive to produce–and we found some surprising answers…
The most expensive sword fight in movie history was in the movie “Kill Bill: Volume 1” and cost $2.5 million dollars to make. The 5-minute scene took 70 days to shoot and featured more than 200 Japanese stuntmen, 70 actors, and an array of weaponry from samurai swords to machine guns.
The second most expensive sword fight in movie history was in the movie “Knights of Badassdom” and cost $2 million. The sword fight was between a female warrior named Gwen (Summer Glau) and a man named Hung (Peter Dinklage).
The third most expensive sword fight in movie history was in the movie “The Man with the Iron Fists” and cost $1 million. The scene featured RZA, Cung Le, Byron Mann, Rick Yune and Andrew Lin.
The fourth most expensive sword fight in movie history was in the movie “The Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” and cost $900,000. The scene featured Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow and Ian McShane as Blackbeard.
The fifth most expensive sword fight in movie history was in the movie “Robin Hood” and cost $800,000. The scene featured Russell Crowe as Robin Hood fighting
In the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly, the editors have a list of “The 25 Most Expensive Movie Scenes Ever” — and for $30 million, Kill Bill vol. 2 wins the honor of having the most expensive sword fight in movie history.
But no surprise there: director Quentin Tarantino is one of our most cinematically literate filmmakers, and his homage to Japanese samurai films has been noted previously. In fact, Kill Bill vol. 2 made our own list of the most expensive sword fights in movie history back in 2003. Here’s a look at that top five (with box office numbers to date as well):
5. Kill Bill vol. 2 (2004) — $30 million
4. Gladiator (2000) — $34 million
3. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) — $38 million
2. Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002) — $42 million
1. The Matrix Reloaded (2003) — $44 million
The Kill Bill films are perhaps the most famous sword-fights in film, since the characters are using katanas. They’re also some of the most expensive to make.
The first film’s sword fight between The Bride and O-Ren Ishii cost $3 million, but this was due to a number of reasons. First, The Bride had to undergo extensive training with an instructor in order to ensure that her movements were authentic enough and she didn’t take any injuries.
Secondly, it had over 100 crew members on set, to ensure that the scenes were perfect for the purposes of the film. This was one of the most expensive scenes to make in a Quentin Tarantino movie ever as well.
1: Kill Bill Volume 2 (2003)
The Bride vs. Elle Driver
In this final showdown, Elle Driver confronts the Bride, who is unconscious and in a coma from a poisonous snake bite. It is only after Driver takes out the Bride’s one good eye (courtesy of Pai Mei) that she realizes that the Bride had hidden a Black Mamba inside her robe. After a brief battle, the Bride triumphs by choking Elle with her own watch. The watch was given to Elle by Bill himself as a symbol of their relationship and loyalty.
Costume Design
As the final showdown between two of the deadliest assassins in the world, many people were disappointed that there were no elaborate costumes involved. The Bride was still wearing her yellow jumpsuit while Elle was wearing a plain white outfit, which was fitting to her character at least. Looking back at the previous sword fights throughout this film though, I think it’s safe to say that this one was definitely more about story than costume design.