The Real-Life Inspiration Behind Alan Arkin's Argo Character Work, Explained

Alan Arkin, the beloved Oscar-winning actor who died at 89 on June 30, 2023, was known for a myriad of roles throughout his illustrious 58-year career. Among Arkin's most notable turns was as free-wheeling film producer Lester Siegel for actor-director Ben Affleck's 2012 best picture Oscar winner, "Argo," which earned Arkin a best supporting actor nomination.

Based on a true story, "Argo" is set amid the Iran Hostage Crisis in the late 1970s and early 1980s, where CIA Agent Tony Mendez (Affleck) poses as a Canadian filmmaker scouting Iran as a location for a science fiction movie titled "Argo." In reality, the location search is an undercover operation to rescue six Americans hiding in Iran. To make the fake film production feel authentic, Siegel is recruited to aid Mendez in the operation.

Arkin told The Hollywood Reporter that since Siegel was a composite character, the filmmaker he gleaned the most inspiration from for his role in "Argo" was legendary Warner Bros. studio boss Jack Warner. "[The character] was out of my imagination, but I used Jack Warner as a basis," Arkin told THR in 2012. "He's someone who is very comfortable in his own skin, someone who knew the ins and outs of the business, backwards and forwards."

As such, Arkin's Warner-like character oozed with confidence, delivering such memorable lines as, "Argo-f*** yourself."

Alan Arkin told Vulture in 2012 that Jack Warner was extraordinarily confident and brash; traits he got to experience once in person. "It was a party, I think, for 'Wait Until Dark,'" Arkin told the publication. "A lot of people and this little man — he looked like he was about three-feet-one — came over to me with a big smile on his face, and he says, 'Hi! I'm the man that owns this building.' And I said, 'Oh,' and that was about it. He just went on for about five minutes exalting in his ownership of his studio, very affable and aggressive and comfortable with himself."

And by the way, Arkin admitted to Vulture, Warner really wasn't that short.

While many of the characters in "Argo" are based on real people, the irony of Arkin's iteration of Siegel is that the person was real only in the sense of the character's name and background. As such, the producer became a part of the composite character that Arkin was given to work with. "There was a real producer named Lester Siegel, and he apparently did some work with the OSS [Office of Strategic Service] in World War II, and he's a lot of what the guy's based on, but there were other people thrown in," Arkin told Vulture.

In an effort to cut through the clutter, Arkin decided to focus on Warner's personality instead of creating a character out of the composite role he was given. And that focus ultimately led Arkin to log one of the most memorable roles of his long Hollywood career.