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There's no way she was offered Basic Instinct

posted 12 years ago by JaysonT
5 replies | jump to latest

I love Debra Winger and thought she was at her best in Terms of Endearment- but there's No way in hell she turned down the role in Basic Instinct (1992), meant to star a SEX symbol, which ultimately went to Sharon Stone.

Yet on the IMDB Trivia it clearly states she turned down the role, so we're to assume Winger was the FIRST choice to play Michael Dougla's sex addiction? Come on. First, she was too old. Secondly she's a great actor but not really what I would call a sex symbol.

Also what an idiot she was to turn down such Oscar fare as The Silence of the Lambs, Thelma & Louise, Ghost, The Accused. Seems rather odd to me. And I see plenty of Trivia claiming "so and so turned this role down"- when in reality they were never the director's choice to begin with.

Anyone else annoyed that Winger a) seems to like to turn down brilliant roles but is quoted to being someone who is difficult BECAUSE she likes good acting, and b) that we are to believe she was the first choice to be in Basic Instinct and To Die For, both films requiring sexier stars- (and To Die For was originally slated for Meg Ryan).

[–] n/a

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[–] Ekarto 11 years ago

Basic Instinct was one of the hottest screenplays in town. If you read the trivia for the film, you'll see that almost every single major actress in Hollywood was approached to play Catherine Tramell. All of them turned the role down, mostly due to the explicit nature of the sex scenes. Plus, Joe Eszterhas had a known reputation of being a mysoginist, which I'm sure did not sit well with someone like Winger.

Yeah, Debra doesn't seem to be the "Sharon Stone" type, but neither were most of the actresses that were initially offered the part. I remember Emma Thompson, of all people, recalling turning down the role because her saggy breasts wouldn't have been "up to the task".

[–] death_jamm_productions 10 years ago

actually you'd be an IDIOT as you put it for putting your marriage and raising of children to the side in order to pursue films

http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/masterd48

[–] death_jamm_productions 10 years ago

actually you'd be an IDIOT as you put it for putting your marriage and raising of children to the side in order to pursue films

http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/masterd48

[–] jefgg 9 years ago

Michael Douglas recommended Kim Basinger for the role of Catherine Tramell, but Basinger declined. He had also proposed Julia Roberts. Greta Scacchi and Meg Ryan also turned down the role, as did Michelle Pfeiffer, Geena Davis, Kathleen Turner, Ellen Barkin, and Mariel Hemingway. Director Paul Verhoeven considered Demi Moore. Sharon Stone, who was eventually selected for the role, was a relative unknown until the success of this movie; she was paid a minimal amount of $500,000, considering the film's extensive production budget.