List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
09-14-12, 09:38 AM
#1
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List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
Is there a website or list somewhere of movies that were written or even cast with a specific actor or as part of a series in mind but for whatever reason that fell through, so it was rewritten with a new actor or as part of a different series or standalone film?
I am thinking of how Die Hard 3 originially began as a Lethal Weapon flick. I am also trying to remember of the movie that Andrew Dice Clay was supposed to do as part of his 3 picture deal but after Ford Fairlane, the studio paid him off and that movie was rewritten for a bigger star and it was a pretty big action flick I think.
I just find that kinda stuff interesting so if anyone knows of any offhand or knows of a site that lists stuff like this I would love to hear about them.
I am thinking of how Die Hard 3 originially began as a Lethal Weapon flick. I am also trying to remember of the movie that Andrew Dice Clay was supposed to do as part of his 3 picture deal but after Ford Fairlane, the studio paid him off and that movie was rewritten for a bigger star and it was a pretty big action flick I think.
I just find that kinda stuff interesting so if anyone knows of any offhand or knows of a site that lists stuff like this I would love to hear about them.
09-14-12, 09:40 AM
#2
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
The One with Jet Li was written for The Rock
09-14-12, 09:45 AM
#3
Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
MR. MOTO'S GAMBLE (1938) was originally written as a Charlie Chan movie, but when Warner Oland died, it was reworked for the Mr. Moto series, in which Hungarian-born Peter Lorre played a Japanese sleuth. Rather than change the entire script, they even kept Chan's "Number One Son," Lee Chan, as a character in this, played by Keye Luke, who played him in the Chan films. They stopped making the Moto films after 1939, for obvious reasons, while continuing with the Chan series with a new actor, Sidney Toler, in the lead.
09-14-12, 09:47 AM
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
Beverly Hills Cop was supposed to be a less comedic action flick starring Sylvester Stallone.
09-14-12, 10:35 AM
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
Wasn't the Diehard with a Vengeance script an original script called Simon Says, that was considered as a script for a Lethal Weapon flick? It's not like they just changed the names from Riggs and Murtaugh to McClane and Zeus.
09-14-12, 11:51 AM
#6
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
Mulholland Dr. was originally going to be a TV series pilot but it was rewritten as a standalone film.
09-14-12, 11:58 AM
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
Saw II was originally a fresh tale by Bousman before it was rewritten into the series when he came onboard.
09-14-12, 12:16 PM
#8
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
The only thing I can think of offhand is The Big Score (1983), originally written with the intention of being a Dirty Harry movie, but repurposed as a Fred Williamson vehicle.
09-14-12, 12:24 PM
#9
Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
Movies starring Ed Norton?
09-14-12, 01:14 PM
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
Salt was originally meant for Tom Cruise, but the gender was rewritten for Angelia Jolie.
09-14-12, 02:17 PM
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
'All The Fine Young Cannibals', yes where the pop band got it's name, was actually written to star Chet Baker as the good looking trumpet player in a movie about his early life. Chet had the looks and talent to be a star.
Chet moved out of the country to Europe after a run-in with the law over smack, and Robert Wagner wound up playing 'Chad Bixby' in the film with his wife Natalie Wood.
Chet moved out of the country to Europe after a run-in with the law over smack, and Robert Wagner wound up playing 'Chad Bixby' in the film with his wife Natalie Wood.
09-14-12, 02:29 PM
#12
DVD Talk Legend
Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
The Cable Guy was originally written for Chris Farley. Farley was also cast as Shrek, but I don't know if it was actually written with him in mind.
09-14-12, 02:45 PM
#13
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
We're going to need to be careful in this thread about movies that were actually written with someone in mind, as opposed to "first choices" that turned down (or couldn't take) the part. Unless the writer and director are one and the same, there's very little chance that the part was specifically written with one actor in mind. Usually the writer has an actor in mind, the producer has another actor in mind, then the director has someone totally different in mind. If any one of those actors are hired, they'll say they were the "first choice" for the part in all future press materials. 
09-14-12, 03:24 PM
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
Die Hard was written as a sequel to Commando, Arnold didn't want to do it so it developed into an original property.
Simon Says was written with Brandon Lee in mind, then after his death it somehow became the basis of a Lethal Weapon 4 script, then once that failed is was made into Die Hard with a Vengeance. I think it had something to do with Joel Silver signing an exclusive deal with WB, the project was set up at Fox and Fox didn't want to let it go to WB.
Die Hard is interesting in where it's storylines/scripts come from. The plot for Die Hard came from a novel, that was a follow up to another novel called "The Detective" which was previously made into a film starring... Frank Sinatra! Die Hard 2, was also based on a novel called "58 minutes" or something like that. Die Hard with a Vengeance was based on the screenplay Simon Says. Live Free or Die Hard was based on a screenplay WW3.com written in the late 90's, the basis was taken from a magazine article.
It seems A good day to Die Hard will be the only film in the series that started from an original script/story.
Simon Says was written with Brandon Lee in mind, then after his death it somehow became the basis of a Lethal Weapon 4 script, then once that failed is was made into Die Hard with a Vengeance. I think it had something to do with Joel Silver signing an exclusive deal with WB, the project was set up at Fox and Fox didn't want to let it go to WB.
Die Hard is interesting in where it's storylines/scripts come from. The plot for Die Hard came from a novel, that was a follow up to another novel called "The Detective" which was previously made into a film starring... Frank Sinatra! Die Hard 2, was also based on a novel called "58 minutes" or something like that. Die Hard with a Vengeance was based on the screenplay Simon Says. Live Free or Die Hard was based on a screenplay WW3.com written in the late 90's, the basis was taken from a magazine article.
It seems A good day to Die Hard will be the only film in the series that started from an original script/story.
09-14-12, 04:00 PM
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
Dan Aykroyd originally wrote Ghostbusters (Venkman) and Spies Like Us (Fitz-Hume) with John Belushi in mind.
09-16-12, 09:41 AM
#17
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
Jerry Belson wrote The End (1978) with Woody Allen in mind as the terminally ill man trying to find the nerve to kill himself. Burt Reynolds ended up playing that role (and also directed).
09-16-12, 09:56 PM
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09-18-12, 11:54 AM
#19
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
09-18-12, 12:09 PM
#20
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
I'm glad the show never got picked up because the movie is one of my favorites, but I'd love another David Lynch TV series.
09-18-12, 12:51 PM
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
09-18-12, 12:59 PM
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
^ If you search the shadier parts of the internet, you can find the pilot version, which contains a few different scenes that do not appear in the film. The history of Mulholland Dr. is discussed quite well in the Blu-ray release available in the UK.
this link has a description of the differences: http://www.mulholland-drive.net/studies/pilot.htm
this link has a description of the differences: http://www.mulholland-drive.net/studies/pilot.htm
09-18-12, 01:00 PM
#23
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
It was a pilot for ABC, Studio Canal+ offered to buy the pilot back from ABC so he could complete it as a movie, they obliged and gave him about $7m to finish it. The pilot was shot in early 1998 and was then completed as a movie in late 2000.
Last edited by RichC2; 09-18-12 at 01:13 PM.
09-18-12, 01:21 PM
#24
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
I thought Big Trouble in Little China originally started out as a Buckeroo Banzai sequel, but wikipedia says otherwise.
09-18-12, 01:31 PM
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Re: List of movies that were written with a specific actor/series then rewritten?
When Jared Harris was interviewed about taking the role of Moriarty in Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, he was amused to find all the costume designs still had Daniel Day-Lewis' face and body 'shopped into them.