Ridley Scott rose to fame and acclaim when he directed the now-classic 1979 sci-fi film Alien. It was only Scott’s second feature film (the first being The Duelists in 1977), but already earned an Oscar win for Best Visual Effects. Now, it is considered one of the formitive sci-fi works in the history of cinema.

After Alien, Scott went on to direct many crucial films in the sci-fi, historical epic, and drama genres. He had another sci-fi with Blade Runner in 1982, which went on to get a 21st century legacy sequel with Blade Runner 2049. Other key Scott films include Gladiator, which won an Oscar for Best Picture.

Now, Scott has four Oscar nominations to his name, and his ᴀssociated films have amᴀssed even more in total. This includes three Best Director nominations.

One of Scott’s most influential works falls outside of his more typical sci-fi and historical genres. This movie was released in 1991, and earned him a Best Director nomination. Now, one of the movie’s stars reflects on the film and reveals that he was almost cast in a different role.

Christopher McDonald Almost Played A Villain In Thelma & Louise

The Star Was Resistent To Take On The Part

Christopher McDonald reveals that he nearly played a more antagonistic character in Thelma & Louise. Directed by Scott and based on a script by Callie Khouri, Thelma & Louise is a road trip drama about two women who go on the run after committing crimes. The film features Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis in the lead roles.

The crime in question occurs when a bar patron, Harlan, tries to rape Thelma. Thelma intimidates him by threatening to shoot, but as he goads her on when she runs away, Thelma ends up shooting and killing him. This becomes a key plot point as it cues the тιтular leads to go on the run.

As per The New York Times, McDonald reveals that he almost had a different role in Thelma & Louise. According to the actor, Scott was originally considering him to play Harlan, which McDonald says was a role that would have sent him “right into therapy.”

When eventually cast as Darryl, McDonald invited co-star Davis to lunch and they “hugged it out.” Check out the quote from McDonald below:

So, I said, ‘Sir, in all honesty, I think I’d be much better as the husband.’

What This Meant For Thelma And Louise

Harlan Was Played By Timothy Carhart

McDonald still did not land a morally desirable role in Thelma & Louise. Darryl is the husband of Davis’ character Thelma, and he is portrayed as overly controlling and emotionally abusive. For this reason, Thelma does not want to return home to him.

Nonetheless, McDonald’s characterization of the Harlan role highlights just how intense a character that was in the classic film. The Harlan role eventually ended up going to Timothy Carhart. Carhart had a small but critical role in Thelma & Louise, and he was as perfectly vile as McDonald was manipulative in his role.

Source: NYT