High Noon 2004, The 1981 science fiction film "Outland", starring Sean Connery as a federal agent on an interplanetary mining outpost, has been compared to "High Noon" due to similarities in themes and plot. The plot for the 1987 high school comedy film Three O'Clock High was loosely based on "High Noon". A teen desperately attempts to avoid a fight with a menacing bully, set to happen at 3 o'clock. "High Noon" is referenced several times on the HBO drama series "The Sopranos". Tony Soprano cites Gary Cooper's character as the archetype of what a man should be, mentally tough and stoic.
High Noon agent ... and find out why I didn't get "High Noon" instead of Cooper ..." After Wayne turned down the Will Kane role, Kramer offered it to Gregory Peck, who declined because he felt it was too similar to his role in "The Gunfighter", the year before. He later said he considered it the biggest mistake of his career. Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift, and Charlton Heston also declined the role. Kramer saw Grace Kelly in an off-Broadway play and cast her as Kane's bride, despite Cooper and Kelly's substantial age disparity (50 and 21, respectively). Rumors of an affair between