Diane Lane recalls ‘hot’ time filming ‘Outsiders’ with Tom Cruise, Rob Lowe

(NewsNation) — Actress Diane Lane is opening up about filming “The Outsiders,” calling her time on set overwhelming. 

Lane was on a recent episode of “The Drew Barrymore Show” and was asked about filming the movie with mostly male costars, Tom Cruise, Rob Lowe, Emilio Estevez, Ralph Macchio, C. Thomas Howell, Patrick Swayze and Matt Dillon. 

“What was it like to be with literally every single young man who would become the biggest male movie stars?” Host Drew Barrymore asked.

“It was hot! It was great,” Lane responded.  

She did add that she did need a break because, “it was kind of… too much testosterone for one girl. So, I kept to myself. But I was definitely pinching myself. I was definitely overwhelmed.” 

Francis Ford Coppola’s 1983 film is based on S. E. Hinton’s book of the same name.  

“’The Outsiders’ chronicles the growing tension between two rival gangs: The working-class Greasers and the rich Socials, or Socs for short. When young Ponyboy Curtis (Howell) befriends Lane’s character, Cherry, one night at the drive-in, he sets off a chain reaction that leads to unspeakable tragedy for both groups,” Entertainment Weekly describes.  

Francis Ford Coppola aimed for actors to embody social differences 

The Oscar-nominated actress told Andy Cohen in 2017 that the actors who played Socs received a higher “daily stipend” than those who portrayed the Greasers, which she said caused genuine tension between the groups, according to Parade. 

Macchio also made similar comments in 2024 on an episode of “Live with Kelly and Mark” about Coppola’s process of making the movie, saying the director used this background in theater to help make the movie.  

He said that because the Greasers didn’t have as much as the Socs, Coppola placed them in rooms on lower floors in the hotel and even their scripts were bound differently than the actors who played the Socs.

“The Karate Kid” actor also said Coppola gave him a task of living off $5 a day to help him better understand his character.  

Diane Lane keeps memorabilia from “The Outsiders”  

Lane was on “Live with Kelly and Mark” and revealed to Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos that she kept a bomber wrap jacket from the set. 

“It says, ‘My Cherry,’ and ‘Lane’ and ‘The Outsiders’ on the back. I was thinking of giving it to the Smithsonian. I think they passed on it, though. Good for me.”