Now known around the world, this actor has not always bathed in success. Before glory, he went through very complicated moments, which he spoke of with frankness. Rediscover the unexpected course of Richard Gere.
Today, Richard Gere is a familiar face in world cinema, notably thanks to his emblematic role in Pretty Woman (1990). However, before knowing fame, the actor went through years of galley that he never sought to hide.
Invited to the Cannes Film Festival last year to present Oh, Canada by Paul Schrader, Richard Gere had confided in his complicated beginnings in the profession. At a time when proposals were rare, he accepted roles that he would never have considered in other circumstances – including those who were going to explode his career.
“” “Pretty Woman is something, basically, that I would never have done. Officer and gentleman neither. These scenarios did not interest me”He explained in an interview granted in 1993 to Movieline magazine (via Newsner).“He's the producer Jeffrey Katzenberg Who offered me these two films when I was almost nothing.»
Projects accepted by necessity
But at that time, he didn't really have the luxury of choosing: “Before these films, I was a little forced to beg“He confessed.” “Play in Private affairsfor example, was a very difficult decision to make because it could have been a real shit.»
It is therefore essentially for financial reasons that he ends up accepting the role of Edward Lewis in Pretty Woman.
“” “Regarding Pretty Woman (film with which he has a problem), one thing by calling for another, I started to see what I could bring to the film, but at the start, I said yes for money, it was not a deep desire”, He admitted with a disarming frankness.
But, against all odds, this shooting marked a turning point in his career and in his way of approaching his job: “Then, I made the film, I had a good time, and it is probably because I did not feel this pressure of doing something important that I was able to explore other things in the role but also as a man. It allowed me to find a much more free way of working, which I have been using since then.»
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This newly discovered freedom guided him for the rest of his artistic journey.
“” “Finally, I took pleasure in doing it. And as I did not feel this pressure to deliver an important 'performance, I was able to experiment, relax, and explore other facets of the character … and myself.»
In recent years, we have seen Richard Gere In romantic comedy yes, I want it?, Faced with Diane Keaton (available in streaming on Paramount+), in the drama Oh, Canada therefore, from Paul Schraderwith Uma Thurman and Jacob Elordi (available in VOD), as well as in The Agency series with Michael Fassbender, Jeffrey Wright and Jodie Turner-Smith (available on MyCanal).
Among his still unpublished projects in France, we can cite the dramatic comedy and Thriller Longing of Savi Gabizon with Diane Kruger, released in 2024 in the United States and that we are still waiting to be able to discover at home.
Otherwise, Pretty Woman is to be reviewed in Disney+.
