Christopher Reeve: What Might Have Been

This is a rather odd AH, but I am a huge fan of Christopher Reeve and going through his bio/history I was surprised to see the number of important movies he turned down: The Mutiny, Officer and a Gentleman, American Gigolo, Arthur, World According to Garp, Urban Cowboy, Romancing the Stone. I began thinking about what the repercussions would have been had he selected certain movies. The role Reeve turned down in The Mutiny went to a young, unknown Mel Gibson and served to really launch Mel's career. Take away that opportunity, Gibson may not have made it. Lethal Weapon may have been miscast (Gibson made that movie) and the franchise could have been stillborn, no Braveheart, no Passion of the Christ. If Reeve had taken Officer and a Gentleman and American Gigolo, Richard Gere would have lost out on his chance at Hollywood stardom. Had Reeve taken Romancing the Stone, Michael Douglas' career would not have rebounded and the classic Gordon Gecko character may have failed under some other actor and other famous fare including Fatal Attraction, Falling Down, and Basic Instinct may have foundered.

Then there is the issue regarding Morgan Freeman. Had Chris been in acting solely for the fame and money, he never would have pushed to make Street Smart, a small budget movie he was obsessed with seeing filmed. No Street Smart, no opportunity for Morgan Freeman to play a pimp and win an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor establishing the man for later years. One good trade off is there would be no Superman IV (that flick only being made so Reeve could make Street Smart).

I can't fault Chris for going for what he viewed as the more artistic movies (Somewhere in Time, Death Trap, etc.). It was only later in his career that Chris began to realize what his choices meant for his career when he began to be passed over for roles (Bonfire of the Vanities, Pretty Woman). The guy had amazing talent. If he had been smarter in his movie choices who knows how far Chris could have gone.
 
... The role Reeve turned down in The Mutiny went to a young, unknown Mel Gibson and served to really launch Mel's career. Take away that opportunity, Gibson may not have made it. Lethal Weapon may have been miscast (Gibson made that movie) and the franchise could have been stillborn, no Braveheart, no Passion of the Christ. ....

At least in the US, that film was titled The Bounty (reasonable confusion, of course, since it was about the Mutiny on the Bounty!)

But I love this POD if only for the tiny, marginal ways that my life would be better without Mel Gibson. The "obvious" ones are that I would never have had to listen to all the media blather about Gibson's stupid anti-semitic comments or his Christploitation film Passion of the Christ.

But it goes even further than that! I'm quite confident that Mel's two best movies, Lethal Weapon and Chicken Run, would have both been just as good with, say, Patrick Swayze or Steve Gutenberg taking those roles. So there's no downside. (To anyone who's about to say "Braveheart" let me stop you right there and ask you whether maybe they could have cast a Scot in that role!)

And think about the hidden upsides! I may be in the minority here, but I think Mad Max was the worst movie that I've ever sat through in my life. If it hadn't been "Mel's first movie", I never would have heard of it, saving me an hour of watching Australian men prance around in cheap leather. And I'm certainly in the majority in thinking that the Mel Gibson guest appearance on The Simpsons was one of the worst in that series' long history of weak guest appearances -- so that's another half-hour of my life that I'd get back.
 
This is a rather odd AH, but I am a huge fan of Christopher Reeve and going through his bio/history I was surprised to see the number of important movies he turned down: The Mutiny, Officer and a Gentleman, American Gigolo, Arthur, World According to Garp, Urban Cowboy, Romancing the Stone. I began thinking about what the repercussions would have been had he selected certain movies. The role Reeve turned down in The Mutiny went to a young, unknown Mel Gibson and served to really launch Mel's career. Take away that opportunity, Gibson may not have made it. Lethal Weapon may have been miscast (Gibson made that movie) and the franchise could have been stillborn, no Braveheart, no Passion of the Christ.
Actually Mel Gibson was alrady a rising star by the time Bounty came out in 1985. His big break outside of Australia came in 1983 with film A Year of Living Dangerously. With the release of Mad Max: Return to Thunderdome, also in 1985, Mel Gibson acheived star status. The Bounty did not get good reviews and relatively bombed in the box office. It really didn't make much of a difference in his rise to stardom.
 
I Think the question that should be adressed is what if Christopher Reeve did not have that riding accident in May 1995? Or what if the horse didn't suddenly stop at mid-course causing Reeve to have that fall? What if he rode a another horse? Fianlly, what if he did fall off the horse but only strained his neck and broke his shoulder, thus never getting paralyzed? What would his life and career turn out then?
 
I Think the question that should be adressed is what if Christopher Reeve did not have that riding accident in May 1995? Or what if the horse didn't suddenly stop at mid-course causing Reeve to have that fall? What if he rode a another horse? Fianlly, what if he did fall off the horse but only strained his neck and broke his shoulder, thus never getting paralyzed? What would his life and career turn out then?
Well, for one, he'd never donate all that money to spinal cord research and the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation would never exist.
 
Well, for one, he'd never donate all that money to spinal cord research and the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation would never exist.
It is very likely Chistopher Reeve doesn't die in 2004 and is would be still alive today but unfortunately his wife Dana gets lung cancer and dies in March 2006. As a result of this he devotes much of money and resources to cancer research and forms the Dana Reeve Foundation. I assume he would be financially well off so that he could be very selective about the roles he chooses in film and television, and probably go into directing and producing some film projects of his own.
 
It is very likely Chistopher Reeve doesn't die in 2004 and is would be still alive today but unfortunately his wife Dana gets lung cancer and dies in March 2006. As a result of this he devotes much of money and resources to cancer research and forms the Dana Reeve Foundation. I assume he would be financially well off so that he could be very selective about the roles he chooses in film and television, and probably go into directing and producing some film projects of his own.
OK, so he might donate a lot of money to cancer research. But he will not be doing the same for spinal cord research, since it won't do him any good ITTL.
 
Top