Current Events > (kinda old) Tarantino on how Laurence Fishburne passed on Jules in Pulp Fiction

(+) Yeah! (+)

basically, he says Fishburne called him up and said he wanted to do it, but the advisers he hired told him to pass on it, since he wanted to be a leading man and not have a supporting role (and not one to John Travolta, at that).

anyway, Tarantino goes on to talk about Die Hard 3, and how the role of Carver was pretty much written for Fishburne, and how in that movie, he'd have almost as big a role as Bruce Willis. unfortunately, Fishburne was asking for too much ($1 million), so Sam Jackson came up as an alternative due to his exposure from Pulp Fiction.

it's interesting how it all comes around.

the story was just recommended to me, btw, but I guess the interview was from about two years ago:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NafZG0bGDKk

Both Good actors, but Jackson definitely blew up thanks to these two roles in particular. I'm not sure Fishburne had the charisma to play the parts in such a way that it would have had the same effect, but that possibility is there and I'm sure eats at him alot.

agreed.

I also don't see Fishburne appearing in all of the Tarantino movies like Sam Jackson did, so this was all most likely for the best.

That's a random fascination of mine. I like hearing about the what-ifs and imagining the outcome.

Movies that were supposed to be made, songs that never came to be, music groups that fell apart before making an album, etc.

When you look at it both Jackson and Fishburne have had very similar career paths at one time.

Both have played the dad in a hood movie.
Both have starred in a major filkm franchise.
Both have done video game voice work.

The paths did split off because Jackson hasn't done regular TV work like Fishburne, who has shows like Pee-Wee's Playhouse, CSI, and Black-Ish on his resume.

Im not Laurence Fishburne!

Samuel L. Jackson was a supporting character to John Travolta? He really stole the film away from him if he was.

Jules is the character you leave the film remembering the most. Maybe John Travolta should have had a wallet which read Bad Motherfucker.

I still want to see Adam Sandler as the Bear Jew. Would have been insane.

I like both but Fisburne would have been great in those movies.

[LFAQs-redacted-quote]


Fantastic but in a movie with Mike Myers already playing a Nazi war general would've changed the whole thing as a Happy Tarantino Production.

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Academy award performance

bigtiggie23 posted...

When you look at it both Jackson and Fishburne have had very similar career paths at one time.

Both have played the dad in a hood movie.
Both have starred in a major filkm franchise.
Both have done video game voice work.

The paths did split off because Jackson hasn't done regular TV work like Fishburne, who has shows like Pee-Wee's Playhouse, CSI, and Black-Ish on his resume.

https://youtu.be/jHtSxIoHM5w?t=15

Yeah I'm glad we got sam jackson, and laurence fishburne will always be the matrix's mentor