In this exclusive short documentary, Assistant Director Ron Walsh breaks a 50-year silence.

Speaking on camera for the first time, Walsh reveals that while Director William Friedkin filmed an elevated subway sequence above Brooklyn streets, he was left to coordinate the now-iconic car chase below. With no permits, no stunt doubles, and Gene Hackman behind the wheel, the shoot quickly spiraled into real danger—nearly costing Hackman his life. That chase became the centerpiece of The French Connection, which won five Academy Awards at the 1972 Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor.

Amid the gritty pulse of 1970s New York, The French Connection: Behind the Chase pulls back the curtain on the chaos, danger, and raw ingenuity behind one of the most celebrated sequences in movie history. As Walsh retraces the breathless, near-lawless shoot through Brooklyn’s crowded streets, a portrait emerges—not just of a scene, but of an era when guerrilla filmmaking reigned.

At once personal and historical, the film captures the electricity of a moment when cinema dared to blur the line between fiction and reality—and left tire marks behind.