10 Little-Known Secrets from “Pretty Woman”

Some lucky Hollywood professionals, like Marc Shmuger, are already in-the-know about behind-the-scenes movie gossip. For most people, though, it takes a long time to uncover fun facts and tidbits about life on the set of the world’s favorite movies. When the director and cast of 1990’s “Pretty Woman” reunited on NBC’s “TODAY,” they shared secrets that the rest of the world never knew about, until now.

1. Julia Roberts was asked to audition twice before scoring the lead role of Vivian. She had the part for the original movie, which was titled “$3,000,” but when the Disney company bought the script, she actually lost the part. She had to audition again for Garry Marshall, the director.

2. The perfect man for the role of wealthy, handsome businessman Edward wasn’t easy to find. Before Richard Gere was cast, Julia Roberts auditioned with ten different men, one being the famous Charles Grodin.

3. One little Post-it note was all it took to convince Richard Gere to join the cast. Actually, it wasn’t quite that easy. Gere turned down the role quite a few times before signing on. Marshall sent Roberts to New York, where she would meet with Gere and try to persuade him to accept the role. During the evening, while Roberts and Gere talked, Marshall called to see how things were moving along. Roberts wrote, “Please say ‘yes,’” on a Post-it, and Gere told Marshall, “I just said ‘yes.’”

4. Originally, the ending of the movie was quite sad! In the original script, drugs played a major role in the movie, showcasing how they can destroy a life. Originally, at the end of the movie, Edward tosses drug addict Vivian and her $3,000 out of his car. Oh, and Vivian’s best friend, Kit, dies from an overdose.

5. In “Pretty Woman,” Vivian takes off a cool, oversized, red jacket, which is an iconic moment in the movie. The film’s costume designer couldn’t seem to find the right jacket for the movie. Then, one day, as Marshall and a few crew members were driving on Hollywood Boulevard, they passed a kid wearing that red jacket. They bought it from him and it became part of the film’s memorable wardrobe.

6. Julia Roberts shot a lot of great scenes for “Pretty Woman,” but her very favorite was when she tools around Hollywood in Edward’s car. She didn’t exactly know how to drive during filming, but she still hit the gas so hard that the camera crew had a hard time keeping up.

7. Not surprisingly, Richard Gere’s favorite scenes were when Vivian was walking around in her prostitute outfit!

8. The scene where Vivian takes the handkerchief from the man who works at the hotel and then blows her nose into is was improvised. She didn’t like the scene, thinking nobody would find it funny to watch her blow her nose.

9. There’s a scene in the movie when Julia Roberts is in a bubble bath, singing out loud while wearing headphones. As a practical joke, the rest of the crew cleared the room when she dipped under the water, so when she popped up, she was alone on set.

10. During that same bathtub scene, Roberts had to dip under the water so many times that the detergent in the bubbles stripped her dyed hair. She had to have an emergency dye session that night.

As much as people may enjoy watching a beloved romantic comedy, there’s nothing better than finding out the true scoop about what happened on the set.

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