Thelma & Louise 10 BehindTheScenes Facts About Ridley Scotts Movie

Thelma & Louise: 10 Behind-The-Scenes Facts About Ridley Scott’s Movie

There’s a lot of interesting stories behind the creation of Thelma & Louise, a truly historic film that many have imitated but few have surpassed.

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Released nearly 30 years ago, Thelma & Louise continues to be praised as one of Sir Ridley Scott’s best films. The iconic gender-bending buddy-movie stars Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis as the titular besties who become accidental outlaws on a cross-country road trip, prompting them to evade police while getting their adventurous kicks. The film currently holds an 84% Certified fresh Rotten Tomatoes rating, 88/100 Metascore, and 7.5/10 IMDB mark.

Thelma & Louise hit theaters on May 24, 1991, earning more than $45 million internationally on an estimated budget of $16.5 million. The film scored several Oscar nominations, including one victory for Best Original Screenplay (Callie Khouri). For more, here’s a detailed history of the film’s production.

10 Ridley Scott Was Only Going To Produce The Film

Before taking the directorial duties, Ridley Scott was poised to simply executive produce Thelma & Louise. According to Michelle Pfeiffer in a 2011 interview with Vanity Fair, it was her idea for Scott to direct.

In the running to direct before Ridley took over was his brother Tony Scott, Phillip Noyce, Bob Rafelson, Jonathan Kaplan, Harry Hook, Kevin Reynolds, Chris Menges, and Richard Donner. Donner was intent on shooting what he called a “historic” script but was denied the chance when he insisted that his wife Lauren Shuler Donner produce the film.

9 Casting Thelma Was An Arduous Process

When penning the script, Khouri envisioned Holly Hunter and Frances McDormand in the title roles. At one point, Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn were attached but they both opted to make Death Becomes Her instead.

Before Geena Davis was cast as Thelma, Cher, Kathleen Turner, and Kelly McGillis declined the role. Other considered included Debra Winger, Sigourney Weaver, Rosanna Arquette, Madonna, Jessica Lange, Bridget Fonda, Carrie Fisher, Emma Thompson, Anjelica Huston, Nicole Kidman, and many more.

8 Geena Davis Signed An Open-Ended Contract To Portray Thelma Or Louise

Casting the role of Louise was such a tedious process that Davis signed an open-ended contract that allowed her to play either character if need be.

At one point, Michelle Pfeiffer and Jodie Foster were signed to play the title roles but were forced to drop out when the production ran too long. Pfeiffer has since admitted that she can’t watch Thelma & Louise because she regrets passing the role due to scheduling conflicts. Other actresses up for the role of Louise included Rene Russo, Catherine O’Hara, Diane Keaton, Debra Winger, Kelly McGillis, and Kim Basinger.

7 J.D. Could’ve Been Portrayed By Many Famous Names

Before Brad Pitt ultimately won the role, William Baldwin was cast to play the sexy character of J.D. Baldwin left to make Backdraft instead, playing a role Pitt auditioned for and lost. In addition, George Clooney was rejected five times after trying out for the role of J.D. Mark Ruffalo also auditioned for the role before Robert Downey Jr. was cast. When Downey Jr. was deemed to short in relation to Geena Davis, he was let go.

Christian Slater also tried out for the role of J.D. but lost out to Pitt, who Geena Davis personally lobbied for. Ironically, Slater beat Pitt out for another character named J.D. in Heathers three years earlier. Johnny Depp, Sean Penn, Alec Baldwin, and Kevin Bacon were also considered.

6 The Film Inspired A Tori Amos Song

The liberating story of Thelma & Louise directly inspired the song “Me and a Gun” by American singer-songwriter Tori Amos. Released in October 1991, the song draws from a physical assault Amos suffered when she was 21 years old. Similarly, part of the movie’s plot deals with an attempted rape and subsequent manslaughter that forces the titular leads to go on the lam.

In another musical connection, the film’s writer Callie Khouri molded the character of Thelma after her close friend, country-western singer Pam Tillis.

5 Susan Sarandon Improvised The Final Kiss

Ridley Scott was incredibly open to on-set improvisations and suggestions from his actors. One instance that was not in the script is the emotional farewell kiss shared by Thelma and Louise at the end of the film.

According to Susan Sarandon in the 1995 documentary Celluloid Closet, it was her idea to have Louise kiss Thelma before driving off the cliff to their deaths. Sarandon also disclosed that she kept the kiss a secret from the entire film crew, including Scott, and only informed Geena Davis about it.

4 There Were Two More Unplanned Scenes

In addition to the intimate kiss shared between the title characters, at least two more unplanned sequences made it into the final cut of the film. The first involves Thelma’s abusive husband Daryl (Christopher McDonald), whose flagrant slip and fall in his driveway was a genuine accident. Though he lost his footing, McDonald stayed in character and yelled at the nearby worker. Scott loved the mishap so much he kept it in the film.

The second unscripted instance comes when Louise frightens Thelma by ripping her headphones off. In the DVD commentary, Davis admits that she was supposed to react when Louise calls her name but her walkman volume was so loud that she missed her cue. As a result, Davis was genuinely startled when Sarandon took off her headphones.

3 Louise Saved Thelma In A Scrapped Alternate Ending

Arguably the most iconic image of the movie is the final freeze-frame shot of Thelma and Louise flying off the cliff in a touching suicide pact. However, Scott nearly ended the film differently.

Before settling on the finale shown in the film, Scott entertained the idea of having Thelma survive by having Louise shove her out of the car the instant before it sails off the cliff. This would have made Thelma the sole survivor and Louise the only fatal victim.

2 The Original Ending Was A Lot Darker

Producers were extremely worried about the downbeat ending of the film, which was actually far darker in Scott’s original cut. As a compromise, Scott whittled the scene down to what has become one of the most iconic images of the film.

Scott’s original edit depicted the car falling all the way down to the canyon as a sad B.B. King track plays. Det. Hal Slocumb (Harvey Keitel) would then morosely look at the wreckage below before going back to his car. When pressured for a more upbeat conclusion, he froze the car midair while playing Hans Zimmer’s happier score. The original ending can be found in the film’s Special Edition DVD.

1 Thelma & Louise Made Academy Award History

Thelma & Louise made Academy Award History by becoming just the fourth film to have two women nominated for Best Lead Actress in the same movie. Unfortunately, both lost to Jodie Foster for her role as Clarice Starling in The Silence of the Lambs.

The other three films to bear such a distinction included All About Eve (which earned Anne Baxter and Bette Davis competing Oscar nods), Last Summer (which earned nominations for Elizabeth Taylor and Katherine Hepburn) and Terms of Endearment (which landed Shirley MacLaine and Debra Winger dueling nods).

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/thelma-louise-ridley-scott-movie-facts-trivia/

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