Geffen Pictures; HBO; Paramount PicturesHollywood isn't always as it seems.
Such is the case for many of the iconic characters we know today. While Sarah Jessica Parker and Tom Cruise are now synonymous with the characters that catapulted them to endless stardom, there was a time when the roles of Carrie Bradshaw and Joel Goodsen almost went to another famous face.
In a new book titled Powerhouse: The Untold Story of Hollywood Creative Artists Agency, author James Andrew Miller takes readers into the offices of the industry's most powerful casting agents at the time of major decisions, whether it was convincing Matthew Broderick to take the role of a lifetime or letting down Goldie Hawn after being rejected for a coveted part.
According to the book, casting agents and their impactful words often made the difference between launching the next big star and changing Hollywood history forever. Here are several examples of projects that may have gone a lot differently had it not been for the attention of an agent.
1. Tom Cruise Wasn't Wanted for Risky Business
While the three-time Academy Award nominee burst onto the scene—in his underwear—in the 1983 classic, Risky Business, he allegedly wasn't even wanted for the role.
"It turned out people thought, based on his earlier roles, that Tom was too blue collar to play an upper-middle-class kid from the Midwest," the book reads. Thanks to the urging of his eventual agent, Paula Wagner, Cruise was brought in for a screen test and the rest is history. "If Paula Wagner hadn't been as persistent and as supportive of Tom, he quite simply wouldn't have been in Risky Business," producer Steve Tisch said.
As for that iconic scene of him dancing in a button down and undies, "he wasn't dancing in his underpants in the script," Wagner said in the book. "Tom created that."
2. Tom Cruise's Scientology Membership Sparked a Phone Call
After the actor joined the church in 1990, CAA's chairman Michael Ovitz wanted to talk to the church's leader, David Miscavige. "I decided there were two ways to handle Scientology: Tell them how bad it is and fight them, or just embrace it and try to control any fallout," he said in the book.
"So I called Miscavige and said, 'I've read everything,' and I said, 'I love Tom, he's been with us since he's nineteen. He's probably going to be the biggest star in the world. We've got to work together to make sure it all stays chill and cool and his image is right,' and he agreed."
3. Matthew Broderick Was "on the Fence" About Ferris Bueller
The film made him a household name and continues to be a fan favorite 30 years later, but the Tony winner almost didn't take the role. "I wasn't sure about Ferris, thought it wasn't right and I should do something dramatic," the actor explained in the book. "At that point I was being offered a lot, too."
Broderick had several earlier roles that had required him to talk into the camera, which made him uncertain about doing it again for Bueller. Thanks to the urging of his manager and his agent, he ultimately signed on and the leopard vest was born. "I'm glad, because they were right. They were absolutely right," he said. "I probably have a few movies that I wish I hadn't been in, but Ferris was a good one."
4. Cher Got Tricked Into Joining Moonstruck
She won her first and only Academy Award for her turn as a newly engaged widow who secretly falls for her fiancé brother, but accepting the part of Loretta took a bit of fooling. "I told Ron [Meyer] I couldn't do Moonstruck," she said. "He said, 'Well, I think you're making a mistake, but you need to go and sit down with the, and tell it to them directly.' Which turned out to be so completely full of shit, okay."
While Cher did as her agent had instructed, the meeting didn't go as planned. "The only thing I can remember is waving goodbye to them in the elevator after the meeting saying, 'I'm so excited, too! I can't wait till we start."
5. Goldie Hawn Was Lied to About Thelma & Louise
The Oscar winner really wanted to star in the 1991 cult classic, but when director Ridley Scott decided she wasn't right for the film, her agent Meyer had to let her down easy.
"I didn't want to hurt her feelings, [so] I ate it: I told her that I didn't think the movie was right for her and talked her out of it," Meyer explained. "When the movie came out and was a hit, she told me she regretted not going it, but she didn't dwell on it, and it never affected our relationship."
6. David Letterman Brought Everybody Loves Raymond to Life
As he launched the Late Show With David Letterman, the book notes how a clause in the late-night host's contract included a development deal for a half-hour sitcom. Ultimately, that would become Everybody Loves Raymond.
"You want to know the truth?" CBS executive Les Moonves asked in the book. "We would not have produced the pilot if it wasn't for David Letterman...Phil Rosenthal had never really created anything that worked, but we paid a lot of attention to it because it was Dave's project. Thank God we did."
7. There Was Almost No SJP in SATC
It's nearly impossible to imagine Carrie Bradshaw without Sarah Jessica Parker, but there was a time when the star wanted out. "There were a couple concerns that I had—like I really wasn't keen on doing nudity and language issues," Parker said in the book.
However, at the urging of her agent Kevin Huvane, she filmed the pilot and kept working. Once it was picked up for a series, SJP was uneasy about committing to a series. Once a producer Parker liked joined the show, she officially got started in the role that would bring her four Golden Globe wins and the character of a lifetime. "I loved every single solitary day of that experience, and I am fully aware that I would have never done it had it not been for Kevin," she concluded.