Humphrey Bogart owes his involvement in his most famous movie, Casablanca, to the gangster character he played in High Sierra. By starring as Rick Blaine opposite Ingrid Bergman in Casablanca, Bogart solidified his status as one of Hollywood’s biggest stars and the stage for him to become a cinematic icon. Prior to the film, Bogart was already a veteran actor, but hardly the top actor in the industry.

Most of his acting experience stemmed from Humphrey Bogart’s numerous gangster movie roles. Though most weren’t particularly memorable or have any individual importance to his career, they kept him busy through much of the 1930s. Toward the end of the decade, Bogart’s roles grew more and more significant, with the actor appearing in films like Dark Victory with Bette Davis in Angels With Dirty Faces. All of these parts can be seen as stepping stones toward Bogart joining the Casablanca cast as the male lead, but none were more instrumental to that than the role he played in High Sierra.

Humphrey Bogart Played An Unforgettable Gangster In High Sierra

Roy “Mad Dog” Earle Is Easily One Of Humphrey Bogart’s Best Characters

Humphrey Bogart got a chance to showcase his acting talents and what makes him one of the film noir genre’s best actors when he accepted the role of Roy “Mad Dog” Earle in 1941’s High Sierra, a film noir directed by Raoul Walsh. Although playing the main character, Bogart received second billing behind Ida Lupino, one of Warner Bros.’ most popular actresses at the time. In the movie, Bogart’s Roy Earle is introduced as a career criminal whose release from prison is arranged by a mobster looking to recruit him for a heist. Despite interest in stepping away from a life of crime, Roy Earle willingly participates – and leads – the heist.

As High Sierra’s story plays out, it’s apparent that Roy Earle differs considerably from the various, cold-blooded gangster characters typically played by Edward G. Robinson, James Cagney, and even Bogart himself. In the face of his morally reprehensible deeds, High Sierra is able to mold Roy into a deep and sympathetic character. It accomplishes this by filling the story with several moments that demonstrate the “good” in Roy. One example of this is his relationship with the dog he adopts; as is the case with many movie and TV characters, Roy having a canine companion he clearly cares for goes a long way toward humanizing the character.

There’s also the matter of his relationships with the two major female characters in the film, Joan Leslie’s Velma and Ida Lupino’s Marie. Roy’s efforts to use his money to pay for the surgery to fix Velma’s clubfoot and efforts to keep Marie out of the heist indicate his capacity for kindness and give the audience cause to hope for his redemption. However, the movie doesn’t allow his good qualities to overshadow the bad; after all, it can’t be forgotten that Roy is a gangster for a reason. High Sierra’s ending tragically proves that for all the efforts he’s made to improve his life, Roy can’t escape his past.

Humphrey Bogart Landed The High Sierra Role By Tricking George Raft

Humphrey Bogart Smartly Realized How Important High Sierra Could Be For His Career

As evidenced by all the great character development that Roy experienced in High Sierra, the film amounted to a career-changing opportunity for Bogart, and one that he readily seized upon. That said, it’s worth noting that the part wasn’t simply handed to Bogart; he had to go through great lengths to get it. After reading the book High Sierra was based on, Bogart recognized the potential in the Roy Earle character, but also understood that the role wasn’t his for the taking. At the top of the pecking order at Warner Bros. was A-list Hollywood star George Raft, and he was the studio’s first choice to play Roy.

According to The New York Times, Bogart removed his first obstacle to becoming the star of High Sierra by persuading George Raft not to make the movie. Much like Bogart himself, Raft had spent years playing gangsters and was eager for something deeper. Bogart successfully appealed to that sentiment, convincing Raft that Roy Earle was just a stereotypical gangster movie character. Helping Bogart’s case is the fact that Raft was already hesitant to play a character who would die at the end of the story.

After that, Bogart had to get Warner Bros. on board with casting him. Bogart wrote letters to High Sierra executive producer Hal Wallis, lobbying for the part. He also got a glowing endorsement from John Huston, a well-respected director who went on direct a few of Bogart’s later films, including The Maltese Falcon in the same year. Thanks to Huston’s own arguments and some convincing from Bogart, Wallis decided to take a chance on Bogart and cast him as Roy Earle in High Sierra.

How High Sierra Changed Humphrey Bogart’s Career (& Set Up His Casablanca Role)

Wallis Took A Chance On Bogart For High Sierra, And Bogart Didn’t Disappoint Him

Casting Bogart as Roy Earle paid off immensely, as High Sierra became a mᴀssive hit for Warner Bros and one of Humphrey Bogart’s best movies. That decision being such a profitable one ultimately provided justification for Wallis’ later conviction about casting Bogart as Rick Blaine in Casablanca. In addition to serving as an executive producer on High Sierra, Wallis held the same position during the production of Casablanca. There were rumors at the time that various actors, ranging from Ronald Reagan to George Raft, were up for the part of Rick Blaine, but it’s long been maintained that there was never another option for Rick Blaine than Bogart.

That’s because Wallis had final say on casting, and Bogart was his pick for the role from the start. Earlier, Wallis was considerably less confident about Bogart, but it would seem that his performance in High Sierra was enough to alleviate whatever concerns he had about the star’s acting prowess and range. Years later, Huston made remarks about Bogart’s role in High Sierra that perfectly capture what made it so special.

Those lights and shadows composed themselves into another, nobler personality: heroic, as in High Sierra. I swear the camera has a way of looking into a person and perceiving things that the naked eye doesn’t register.

Huston’s comments about the actor in High Sierra perfectly underscore what was so remarkable about Bogart’s performance in Casablanca. It was largely the quiet moments, scenes where Bogart said little or nothing at all, that really spoke to what his character was feeling. Bogart didn’t always need words to express the bitterness brewing in Rick Blaine, and without High Sierra doing similar things with Roy Earle, it’s all but guaranteed that Warner Bros. would indeed have set their sights on one of their other available stars.