SECRETS OF HOLIDAY HITS Are you Xmas film Noel it all?
IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE
It’s hard to imagine anyone else playing big-hearted George Bailey in the 1946 flick. But the movie was planned as a vehicle for another Hollywood legend, Cary Grant. He eventually moved on to star in another festive-themed film The Bishop’s Wife when director Frank Capra took over the project from RKO. Dancer and actress Ginger Rogers said she regretted turning down the role of George’s wife Mary, played by Donna Reed.
WHITE CHRISTMAS
The 1954 musical is famous for Bing Crosby singing the Irving Berlin song of the same name. But his co-star Danny Kaye wasn’t supposed to be in it. The idea had been to reunite dancer Fred Astaire with Crosby from their 1942 movie Holiday Inn, but Astaire pulled out, feeling he was too old.
HOME ALONE
One of the highlights of the 1990 movie is Macaulay Culkin’s Kevin McCallister outwitting bumbling thieves Harry and Marv. The makers had wanted Robert De Niro to play Harry, but he turned down the part which went to his Goodfellas co-star Joe Pesci. The role of Uncle Frank, played by Gerry Bamman, had originally been written for
sitcom star Kelsey Grammer who also pulled out of the running.
LOVE ACTUALLY
Bill Nighy stole the show in the 2003 movie as ageing pop star Billy Mack. But the actor wasn’t director Richard Curtis’ first choice, with comedian Robbie Coltrane among those considered for the part.
Curtis says he hadn’t initially liked
Nighy after seeing him in a stage performance, but he ended nailing his audition.
THE MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL
Zulu star Michael Caine was an unlikely choice to play a singing Ebenezer Scrooge in the 1992 puppet version of Charles Dickens’ classic story. Actors David Hemmings, Ron Moody, David Warner and US comedian George Carlin were all considered, but
Caine later decided to take the part to impress his then sevenyear-old daughter.
BAD SANTA
As it turned out, Billy Bob Thornton was the perfect pick for a foul-mouthed, department store Santa in the 2003 movie. Yet the role of Willie Soke had been written with
James
Gandolfini in mind, the actor who played mobster Tony in television series The Sopranos.
Others in line ahead of Thornton included Bill Murray, Nicolas Cage and Sean Penn.
DIE HARD
Can you imagine Frank Sinatra as tough cop John McClane in the 1998 action flick? Contractually, Old Blue Eyes had to be offered the part as he was in the 1968 film of a prequel to the book it was based on. Then 70, Sinatra wisely turned it down and
Bruce
Willis stepped in.