Richard Gere opens up about why he almost declined his legendary role in the much-loved 1990 romantic comedy Pretty Woman, which starred him opposite Julia Roberts. Gere played Edward, a rich entrepreneur who hires Vivian (Roberts), a prostitute, in the film, and trouble ensues when they fall in love.
On The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast, Gere shared that when he was first approached with the project’s idea, he didn’t really connect with his character, Edward Lewis. He felt the character had very little depth and was more of a superficial role at best.
Gere said, “I’m so proud of that movie and proud of the work process that we did to create that movie. And I’m not only proud, I’m thankful for that movie because it allowed me to do a lot of other things too.”
His reservations about taking up the role extended to his first meeting with director Garry Marshall. Gere told Marshall that he was not comfortable with the character. He said, “There was no character. So, I read this thing, and I said, ‘It’s not for me.'”
However, Marshall assured him that they would work together to develop the character into something more than just a wealthy man in a suit.
The turning point came when Gere met Julia Roberts. Roberts wrote him a Post-It note requesting him to accept the role, which finally convinced him to join the iconic film—and the rest is history. Gere explained that the team worked collaboratively to bring complexity and appeal to Edward’s character, making him more relatable and multi-dimensional.
He added, “We ended up, you know, really trying to find a character there that made sense within the structure and, you know, the essence of what that piece was. To make it heartfelt, to make it charming, make it fun, make it sexy, you know? And we all loved each other. Great trust, we had a wonderful time, and we had no idea that it was gonna be what it was.”
Richard Gere looks back with pride and gratitude for the project. He cherishes the movie’s surprise success and the memorable time he shared with Julia Roberts and the rest of the production team.
