Tom Cruise’s ‘Interview With The Vampire’ Role Was Rejected By This Oscar-Winning Star: “He Would Have Had To Sleep In A Coffin”
In an excerpt from his new memoir, published in The Telegraph, director Neil Jordan reflected on his decision to cast Tom Cruise opposite Brad Pitt in Interview With The Vampire.
Tom Cruise’s Interview With The Vampire Role Was Offered To Another Actor ( Photo Credit – Wikimedia )
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Tom Cruise is arguably one of the biggest action movie stars in the world. Before being cast in the world-renowned franchise Mission Impossible, he had led highly successful films, including “Top Gun” and “Born on the Fourth of July.”
Starring in movies like “Rain Man” and the 1996 hit film “Interview With The Vampire” proved the action star could also shine as a dramatic actor. But director Neil Jordan revealed Tom Cruise wasn’t the first choice to play Lesat. The movie was adapted from Anne Rice’s original book of the same name.
In an excerpt from his new memoir, published in The Telegraph, Jordan reflected on his decision to cast Tom Cruise opposite Brad Pitt, revealing he originally offered the role to Oscar winner Daniel Day-Lewis.
Jordan revealed that Lewis, whose commitment to method acting is well documented, declined to take on the role. Jordan recalled, “I offered it to Daniel, who read it and, as I expected, didn’t want to play the character.”
Jordan explained a few years ago that Lewis “had confined himself to a wheelchair to play Christy Brown in ‘My Left Foot” and did not relish sleeping in a coffin for the entire production.
Jordan said, “He would have had to sleep in a coffin for the entirety of this production if he had followed the same practice. So we moved on.”
Jordan reaclled after Cruise was announced to star as Lestat, he faced backlash from fans and the book author Anne. Jordan stated, “Half of America, it seemed, had read Anne Rice’s books and wanted a say in the casting of Lestat. Anne herself took to the airwaves, saying that it was as if I had cast Edward G Robinson as Rhett Butler. But she was wrong and was later big enough to admit it.”
However, after the movie was released, critics praised Cruise’s role.
