It's hard to imagine Pretty Woman without both Richard Gere and Julia Roberts but originally, Richard Gere was not too stoked about the idea. In fact, the actor actually rejected the role several times before Julia actually convinced him to push through.
The movie became an instant hit when it was first released back in 1990 and ever since then, the movie has been considered a modern classic when it comes to the romance genre.
The movie tells the story of both Edward and Vivian, two different people with very different social statuses who suddenly strike up a love affair around the lavish and luxurious surroundings of Beverly Hills.
Nowadays, everyone knows the story of Pretty Woman as the film follows an esteemed businessman known as Edward Lewis played by Gere who suddenly hires a prostitute named Vivian played by Roberts in order to be his companion for a whole week right after he gets dumped by his girlfriend just over the phone.
Gere wasn't the first choice?
Even though Gere and Roberts worked perfectly together on-screen portraying the fortuitous lovers, the power couple actually almost did not happen!
Gere was not apparently the first choice for Edward and the decision for him in the role did not arrive quickly. Before Gere, Garry Marshall, the film's director, first considered a number of other people to play the male role including Christopher Reeves, Denzel Washington, and even Al Pacino himself.
Marshall finally settled for Gere who he thought could possibly be the best pick for the role. However, the actor did not actually feel the same way about this choice and he was not too enthusiastic about this decision. In fact, the actor turned this role down several times before actually saying yes. What made him change his mind?
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What did Julia Roberts do to convince him?
As the very last resort, Marshall decided to fly Julia Roberts out to New York City in order to meet the actor and convince him to take the role of Edward in the movie.
While Gere was on the phone with Marshall, who was trying his best to convince Gere to take the role of Edward, Roberts suddenly passed him a certain post-it note with the words "please say yes." and after that, the rest was history!
Gere and Roberts quickly stroke a friendship and the director noted that this was very important when playing any couple role. According to the director, you can fake everything in front of the camera but something you can't fake is chemistry.
The couple did a good job in the movie and the friendship between both Julia Roberts and Richard Gere remained even after the modern classic first released in 1990. The movie is still a memorable movie in the romance genre up to this day.
