Veteran actor Richard Gere shocked in his latest interview, saying that if he was to report the real story from his work in the 1990 romantic comedy Pretty Woman, he would say that despite the film raking up humongous money, the chemistry between him and Julia Roberts was really low. Richard Gere is currently 75 years old.
Pretty Woman has become a cultural touchstone, one of the most beloved romantic comedies in Hollywood history, as it pens down the story of a wealthy businessman played by Gere who falls for an escort, kind-hearted Roberts, to the hearts of millions, and who turned into an onscreen iconic pair of Gere and Roberts. Far from romance was truth behind the scenes, according to Gere.
Interviewed for a podcast to promote his latest movie, Gere confessed, “Julia and I didn’t really have any chemistry at first. It was kinda strange. We got along very well, but the spark everyone talks about wasn’t there right away.”
Accepting that they didn’t appear to have an instant chemistry on screen, Gere clarified that it didn’t come from animosity or any personal conflict between the actors. “Julia’s lovely, and we had fun shooting the movie. But sometimes you just don’t click with someone in the way people expect. We were professionals, and we made it work.”
Gere cited being “very influenced” by director Garry Marshall in the making of their relationship. “Garry had a real gift for seeing things in people that they didn’t always see in themselves,” he said. “He was the one who really made us work together, pushing us to connect in ways we hadn’t anticipated. And it all just came down to storytelling, and it worked.”
Roberts, who was only 22 years old during filming, all of a sudden shot to stardom after Pretty Woman. Both actresses regularly speak warmly of their co-star in interviews – despite Gere’s recent words, it seems that both actors are nostalgic and fondly remember the movie. “It was a different kind of experience for me,” Gere added. “But it’s funny how things work out – the audience saw something that maybe we didn’t even feel at the time.”
Some fans of Pretty Woman may be surprised by Gere’s words, but one can see that the magic of the film wasn’t broken. And even if nothing is lit from the beginning, the film itself to this date remains a timeless classic, as Roberts and Gere long remembered as one of Hollywood’s most beloved on-screen couples.
