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Star Wars: A New Hope
Star Wars: A New Hope
Star Wars: A New Hope
Star Wars: A New Hope
Days of Thunder
Night Shift
Internal Affairs
Forrest Gump
They Live
Film credit
Kurt Russell
Also referred to as Russell, Caruso, Kurt
Stats
- Episodes featuring their films
- 6
- Movies in this archive
- 6
Rewatchables episodes featuring Kurt Russell’s films
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
2019 film
Bill Simmons · Sean Fennessey · Chris Ryan
Aired February 6, 2020
Displaying all 6 episodes
Mentioned in discussions
Recasting Couch
Denzel or a later Kurt Russell are imagined as Han.
In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:24:00Read transcript
- Han requires an unusual combination of cool, humor and charisma; Denzel is proposed as a somewhat edgier alternative. — Van Lathan
- A later Russell is considered plausible because Han must be dashing yet rough, smuggling and likable rather than simply pretty. — Sean Fennessey
Recasting Couch
Mark Harmon or young Kurt Russell as Luke
In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:11:42Read transcript
- Mark Harmon is proposed as a handsome, athletic Luke coming out of UCLA. — Bill Simmons
- A younger Kurt Russell is ultimately preferred as a plausible but slightly cooler Luke. — Bill Simmons
Casting What-Ifs
The original casting search is reviewed across Luke, Leia, Han, Obi-Wan, Vader, Chewbacca, and physical Vader.
In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 01:05:10Read transcript
- Lucas and De Palma auditioned actors together for Star Wars and Carrie, producing overlapping candidates. — Bill Simmons
- John Travolta, William Cat, Robby Benson, Kurt Russell, and Charles Martin Smith are among the discussed Luke possibilities.
- Andrew Stevens is said to have competed with Hamill for both The Oregon Trail and Star Wars. — Bill Simmons
- Karen Allen, Amy Irving, Cindy Williams, Linda Pearl, and Joe Foster are discussed as Leia possibilities, with uncertainty around some claims. — Bill Simmons
- Russell is said to have auditioned for both Luke and Han because his age placed him between the roles. — Bill Simmons
- Jack Nicholson is an intriguing Han thought experiment, while James Kahn and Al Pacino later claimed to have declined the role. — Bill Simmons
- Richard Dreyfuss was reportedly considered for the voice of one of the droids. — Bill Simmons
- The lead actor from many Kurosawa films reportedly declined the mentor role because he feared it would diminish samurai cinema. — Bill Simmons
- Orson Welles was considered for Vader’s voice but rejected as too recognizable; James Earl Jones was used without an initial screen credit. — Bill Simmons
- Peter Mayhew and David Prowse were offered a choice between Chewbacca and physical Vader and selected the good and bad roles respectively. — Bill Simmons
The Butch’s Girlfriend Award for the Weakest Link in the Film
No consensus emerges: Mark Hamill’s early performance is criticized and defended, while Porkins is an alternate.
In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 00:47:39Read transcript
- The first response says, 'I couldn't think of one.'
- Mark Hamill is criticized as limited beside Fisher and Ford and described as an intentionally young, whiny system quarterback.
- The defense says Luke must begin uncertain and off-kilter so his confidence and scars across the trilogy register as growth.
- Kurt Russell is acknowledged as a cooler alternate who may have brought too much confidence to early Luke. — Chris Ryan
- Porkins is another answer because the pilot is immediately lost despite the rebellion’s thin roster. — Chris Ryan
Casting What-Ifs
Kurt Russell, Robin Wright, Tom Sizemore, Dale Earnhardt, Paul Newman
In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:32:26Read transcript
- Kurt Russell is discussed as the initial Rowdy Burns choice before Backdraft. — Bill Simmons
- Robin Wright as Claire Lewicki, Tom Sizemore as Tim Daland, Dale Earnhardt as Rowdy, and Paul Newman as Harry are proposed or reported alternatives. — Bill Simmons
- Dale Earnhardt's refusal to play a perceived villain is questioned because Rowdy is not ultimately the villain. — Bill Simmons
- Don Simpson's self-casting as Aldo Bennedetti and the cutting of most of his performance are discussed. — Bill Simmons
In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 00:16:16Read transcript
- Wasson’s odd, unstarry presence is questioned, but a major star such as Travolta or Pacino might not work as this humiliated protagonist.
- Kurt Russell might give a better performance but make a worse film; Hanks is considered ideal for the ordinary-man part. — Sean Fennessey
- The casting is defended as a modern Jimmy Stewart ordinary man and struggling low-tier actor; Dreyfuss is considered but his career circumstances complicate it.
- Wasson works best in the first act but may lack force for the later thriller. Caruso is floated, then doubted as someone a partner would cheat on. — Chris Ryan
- Wasson’s mundane early behavior emphasizes his lack of star aura; Giamatti is imagined as a later-era alternative. — Chris Ryan
- Kathleen Turner as Gloria could supply both the appearance and voice, though the character’s limited function would probably remain. — Bill Simmons
Casting What-Ifs
Kurt Russell or Mickey Rourke as Billy Blaze
In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 00:50:43Read transcript
- Kurt Russell and Mickey Rourke are reported as having auditioned for Billy Blaze. — Chris Ryan
- Kurt Russell is considered plausible based on Big Trouble in Little China; Mickey Rourke is considered a much stranger fit. — Bill Simmons
- Jaid Barrymore and Ola Ray's small roles are noted. — Bill Simmons
Casting What-Ifs
Nick Nolte declined Peck; the extensive other-candidate list is treated skeptically.
In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:10:23Read transcript
- Nick Nolte reportedly declined Dennis Peck for Another 48 Hrs.; Gere is considered essential despite a long and questionable list of other purported candidates.
- The untrusted candidate list includes Alec Baldwin, Tom Berenger, Jeff Bridges, Pierce Brosnan, Kevin Costner, Willem Dafoe, De Niro, Michael Douglas, Harrison Ford, Mel Gibson, Jeff Goldblum, Ed Harris, William Hurt, Don Johnson, Tommy Lee Jones, Michael Keaton, Nolte, Pacino, Christopher Reeve, Kurt Russell and Schwarzenegger. — Chris Ryan
In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:16:15Read transcript
- Swayze reportedly left the Kurt Russell part in Tango & Cash for Road House, a swap the group thinks benefited both films; Russell would have needed a different Dalton. — Chris Ryan
- Annette Bening originally had Lynch's role; Lynch's claim that she was fired for poor chemistry with Swayze is explicitly doubted. James Garner was sought for Wesley, and Scott Glenn reportedly declined Jimmy, raising questions about his fighting ability. — Bill Simmons
- Swayze's knee injury reportedly led him to decline Predator 2 and choose the less physically demanding Ghost; the hosts identify the proposed role as probably the lead. — Chris Ryan
Half-Assed Internet Research
Fictional Greenbow, the demolished Gump house, Jenny’s disease, Elvis, prosthetics, doubles, props, the rally speech, profit points, the novel, and death theories
In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 01:12:15Read transcript
- Greenbow, Alabama is fictional, and the Gump house built for two months was demolished after a land dispute rather than preserved as an attraction. — Bill Simmons
- Novelist Winston Groom intended Jenny’s disease as hepatitis C, while the filmmakers’ presentation is interpreted as AIDS. — Bill Simmons
- Kurt Russell voiced Elvis, Michael Clarke Duncan wore a prosthetic lip as Bubba, and Hanks’s brother Jim doubled the cross-country run. — Bill Simmons
- Jenny’s birth date matches the Trinity nuclear test, and the Savannah bench is now in the Smithsonian. — Bill Simmons
- Hanks said Forrest’s cut-off rally speech described soldiers returning without legs or not returning at all. — Bill Simmons
- Hanks and Zemeckis exchanged fees for profit points when Paramount sought cuts and earned enormous returns.
- The novel also makes Forrest an astronaut, wrestler, chess player, and broader savant. — Chris Ryan
- An internet theory says bullies kill Forrest early and the braces breaking mark his spirit’s release, with the feather as eventual angel wings; Osment’s later Sixth Sense role is playful support. — Chris Ryan
Casting What-Ifs
Frank written for Keith David
In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:51:44Read transcript
- Frank was reportedly written specifically for Keith David; shared auditions with Sam Jackson are speculated about, and the Kurt Russell original casting is recalled. — Bill Simmons
In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:21:02Read transcript
- The part was written for Kurt Russell, but Carpenter reportedly wanted to avoid another collaboration. — Bill Simmons
- A Russell version is imagined as more talkative; Piper’s few lines and signature dialogue are favored.
Displaying discussions 1 - 12 of 43 in total
Films in the archive
Escape From New York
1981
Furious 7
2015
Miracle
2004
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
2019
Tango & Cash
1989
Tombstone
1993