Clint Eastwood Reveals the Humphrey Bogart Films That Shaped Him

For generations of moviegoers, Clint Eastwood has stood as a pillar of Hollywood, his career stretching back to the 1950s and filled with unforgettable performances. Yet, even a legend like Eastwood has his own cinematic heroes. Among them, Humphrey Bogart holds a special place. Bogart’s influence on American film is hard to overstate. After making his way from Broadway to the big screen in 1930, the New York-born actor quickly became one of the defining faces of Hollywood’s golden era. His legacy is woven through countless classics, from romantic dramas to gritty crime stories, and his impact on the industry is undeniable.

Eastwood’s Admiration for a Hollywood Icon

Few actors have left as deep a mark on their craft as Bogart did, and Eastwood has never shied away from acknowledging that influence. By the time Eastwood began landing roles—often uncredited—in the years before his breakout on Rawhide, Bogart was already nearing the end of his storied career. Bogart lived life to the fullest, embracing the glamour of Hollywood until his death from esophageal cancer in 1957. But his passing didn’t dim the light of his cinematic achievements.

Eastwood has often pointed out that Bogart’s filmography is too frequently reduced to just a handful of standout roles.

“Usually a person is either remembered for a great body of work that they’ve done in their lifetime or else they’re remembered for one or two really great things,”

he once said, as quoted in Paul Nelson’s Conversations with Clint. Eastwood knows this all too well, as his own career is often summed up by his iconic performances as ‘The Man With No Name’ in the 1960s.

Bogart’s Enduring Legacy Through Eastwood’s Eyes

When reflecting on Bogart’s career, Eastwood singled out a few favorites:

“When you think of Bogart, you think of Sierra Madre and The African Queen and The Maltese Falcon,”

he noted, referencing some of the actor’s most celebrated films. Still, Eastwood was quick to remind us that these titles only scratch the surface of Bogart’s extensive work.

“There’s a lot of in-between stuff that you can’t even remember the name of because you purposely put them out of your mind,”

he added.

“The Left Hand of God and many, many others.”

While not every film was a masterpiece, the trio of classics Eastwood mentioned remains hard to top.

Looking at Bogart’s performances in these films, it ’s easy to see the parallels with the kind of roles Eastwood would later take on, especially in the early days of his own career. The influence is clear, not just in the characters themselves, but in the way both actors approached their craft—bringing depth, complexity, and a sense of authenticity to every role they played.