In late 1991, Ford was slated to portray company lawyer A. Philip Randolph in an action-historical film entitled Night Ride Down, which would have been set around a labor union strike in the 1930s. In August, Ford withdrew because he didn't like the third revision. Tartikoff then announced in a press conference he was pulling the plug on the film, citing budget concerns.
Tartikoff's published comments made it sound as though he was yanking the project out from under Ford. "It was a slap in the face, " says one Ford associate, who blames Tartikoff's inexperience. Tartikoff says his remarks were mis-interpreted by reporters.