Robert Wise?

I can't remember where I read this, or when, but I DO remember reading a few years ago that the director asked to consider taking the film over was Norman Jewison. Which is odd because I remember when reading Final Cut that I always thought Jewison might have been the man UA contacted.

Replying to a really old post here, but anyway...

It's almost certainly David Lean.

In the book, Bach often describes Heaven's Gate as looking like 'David Lean decided to make a Western'. Later, Bach recounts the search for an alternative to Cimino, and speaks to 'The Famous Director', who asks 'what does the footage look like?'. Bach replies, 'it looks like you decided to make a Western'.

The man doesn't blink, mom, the man doesn't blink!