In November 2009, Martin Sheen wrote a short piece for Variety about Hal Holbrook in which he recalled that while they were playing lovers in That Certain Summer, Holbrook had a scene in which his character's son rejects him for being gay, and Holbrook was able to cry on cue for the cameras in multiple, repeated takes. When Sheen asked told him how impressive and moving it was to watch him, Holbrook replied, "The older you get, the easier it is."