In a new interview, Sally Field addressed some of the big films she turned down throughout her career, including the hit 1996 comedy The First Wives Club.
The 76-year-old actress – who currently stars in comedy 80 For Brady opposite the recently retired Tom Brady – admitted to People that she decided against casting the film despite one of the eventual stars, Goldie Hawn , she begged To there.
The film ended up starring the trio of Hawn, Bette Midler, and Diane Keaton, but Field didn’t specify whether she would have originally performed in Midler’s or Keaton’s place, or whether the core trio would have expanded into a quartet.
According to Field, she worried about not fitting in with the other leads, whom she called too “musical” to keep up.
“Goldie really wanted me to do this. Maybe it would have been fun, but they were all so musical and I wasn’t,” she said. “And the film wouldn’t have been the same.”
That’s a ‘no’: Sally Field told People on Wednesday that she turned down hit 1996 comedy The First Wives Club because star Goldie Hawn asked her to join; Seen January 6th in Palm Springs
Out of place: “Goldie really wanted me to do that. Maybe it would have been fun, but they were all so musical and I wasn’t,” she said. “And the movie wouldn’t have been the same”; Still from the First Wives Club
Though Forrest Gump actress probably would have lent The First Wives Club even more star power, the comedy managed to thrive without her presence.
The comedy, which also stars Stockard Channing, Sarah Jessica Parker, Marcia Gay Harden and Maggie Smith, was criticized for its script, but critics praised the leading actresses.
According to Box Office Mojo, the film grossed over $181 million at the worldwide box office.
The First Wives Club then spawned a stage music adaptation, and the potential for a sequel was tossed around for years, although it never materialized.
In 2009, Goldie Hawn told AARP The Magazine that the lead cast had all received low offers for a sequel, essentially the same amount they received for the first film, rather than a raise as would be usual.
Although hopes for a sequel continued to linger on Netflix in 2016, Midler seemed to confirm that the sequel was dead for good when speaking to People last year.
“I also campaigned for the First Wives Club, but for political reasons they didn’t want to do it again. And it always broke my heart,’ she said. “I really felt like it was a pretty serious diss because when women have hits, that’s a godsend. But when men have hits, isn’t that great? At least that’s what they told us at First Wives.”
In her interview, Field revealed that she also turned down romantic comedy classic Romancing The Stone.
Dead in the Water: The First Wives Club then spawned a stage music adaptation, and the potential for a sequel was tossed around for years, though it never materialized
Missed out: In her interview, Field revealed that she also turned down romantic comedy classic Romancing The Stone while praising eventual star Kathleen Turner; 2020 seen
She would have starred in the female lead opposite Michael Douglas, a role later filled by Kathleen Turner.
“My instinct was that there is someone else out there who is better. And that someone was Kathleen Turner,” Field admitted. ‘That long-legged Kathleen with her hoarse voice. I mean, she’s still stunningly good. And she is so cute. There is no one like her.”
Even getting agreed to star in 80 For Brady was a bit of a departure for the actress.
“I’ve avoided some other films with women’s groups because I feel like there’s so much more to women than just looking for a date or who my next husband is,” she said.
“I know there’s some territory I can own and some where I can challenge you to be as good as me, and then there’s some I can fake. But really, I’d rather not fake it.’
She stars in the comedy starring screen legends Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Rita Moreno alongside the soccer star of the same name.
Elsewhere in her interview, Field shared that she refined some of her dialogue in the upcoming romantic dramedy, in which Jim Parsons plays TV journalist Michael Ausiello, and detailed his romance with partner Kit Cowan, who later died of cancer.
Field plays Kit’s mother, Marilyn, and she used her own experiences with a gay child to adjust the dialogue so she could perform more naturally.
Change of pace: Agreeing to star in 80 For Brady (pictured) was a departure for Field. “I’ve avoided some other films with women’s groups because I feel like there’s so much more to women than just looking for a date or who my next husband is,” she said
Revelation: Field noted that discovering method acting gave her a new appreciation for her craft. “I can learn from myself,” she recalled thinking, having learned to use her own experiences and memory to shape her on-screen appearances; seen January 19th in LA
Field also looked back on her early acting jobs, including Gidget and The Flying Nun.
“I found a place where I could be myself. But once I got off the stage, I lost track of who I was,” she said of discovering her love for acting. “I would just try to be good, nice, sweet. Try to be cute, try to be nothing, try to slip away.
However, the poor quality of some of the early roles challenged her.
“It was just nonsense,” she says of the bizarre Flying Nun. “I felt totally lost. Fear. And I was humbled.”
It wasn’t until a friend introduced her method acting that she became more comfortable and eventually grew into the acting powerhouse she is today.
“I can learn from myself,” she recalled as she thought after learning to use her own experiences and memory to shape her on-screen appearances. “I didn’t want to be a big star; I didn’t say, ‘Oh, I want to be in films, I want to be a big hit, I want to win awards.’ I just wanted to act.’