Quite a girl Reunion, Ben Affleck’s cool Feet and a $17 Million Payday: 20 Secrets About Runaway Bride Revealed

by Tierney Bricker | Tue., Jul. 30, 2019 3:00 AM

It had been the film ten years within the making—in more ways than one.

Nine years after Pretty girl made Julia Roberts a star and switched Richard Gere into certainly one of Hollywood’s many sought-after leading men, the iconic pair that is on-screen reunited in Runaway Bride.

Released on July 30, 1999, Roberts and Gere once again teamed up along with their Pretty Woman director Garry Marshall, who died in 2016, for the romantic-comedy about a little city woman therefore afraid of commitment that she actually is dashed through the altar 3 times together with jaded divorced newsprint columnist determined to see her run for a time that is fourth. Obviously, they fall in love.

Fans sprinted to your movie theater to look at set’s chemistry, making Runaway Bride, which have been within the works for over ten years with numerous other a-listers connected to star at some time, a larger blockbuster hit than Pretty girl, that was released in 1990.

But simply since it made additional money than Pretty girl does not mean it absolutely was more lucrative, as Runaway Bride did not captivate experts (making only a 46 percent fresh on bad Tomatoes) as well as had certainly one of its movie stars later admitting it simply did not capture the miracle of these past movie. (Plus, one of Roberts’ other iconic rom-coms—Notting Hill—came out simply weeks before.)

Nevertheless, as a result of Roberts and Gere’s effortless charm and charisma—both separately and combined—and Marshall’s knack for the genre, Runaway Bride has secured an area as you of Hollywood’s many enduring intimate comedies, whether or not it absolutely was hardly ever made along with an ending that is different one point.

From the A-listers that have been initially likely to star into the film in 1991 to Roberts’ very own experience as a bride that is runaway listed here are 20 enjoyable facts you will possibly not learn about Runaway Bride.

1. Although the concept seemed tailor-made for Gere and Roberts to own their Pretty Woman follow-up, Runaway Bride had been ukrainian brides really into the works for over ten years, with several other famous actors set to try out the fighting bride-to-be (times four) and cynical journalist.

First up? In 1992, Geena Davis and Harrison Ford had been set to lead the film, nonetheless it dropped apart if the director that is first in had problems with the script. Throughout the next several years, movie movie stars like Michael Douglas, Demi Moore, Ellen DeGeneres and Mel Gibson had been all into the mix.

2. However in 1996, Sandra Bullock ended up being thinking about playing Maggie and urged the task forward. Until she then had some hesitations–much like Maggie along with her suitors–and had been away, with Ben Affleck and Tea Leoni in speaks to take control, aided by the studio liking the concept of a younger few. However when Affleck passed, among the producers made a decision to approach Gere.

3. As he liked the script, Gere had one condition the studio needed to fulfill before he finalized on to try out Ike: “when you can get Julia, I’m in.” Roberts, that has initially been uncertain associated with film whenever she read a past form of the script years prior, chose to take another appearance. And after having a call together with her old Pretty Woman man that is leading the film movie stars had been willing to reunite.

“People have already been looking to get them right right back together for nine years,” studio producer Tom Rosenberg told The LA occasions. “And abruptly it happened—it ended up being all settled in a week.”

4. The next telephone call ended up being one Gere and Roberts would need to make together, because they needed to pursue their Pretty Woman manager to really make the reunion formally complete by directing their love tale again. There was clearly one hitch however, as Marshall had guaranteed to just simply simply take their spouse to Australia for the vacation that is much-needed.

“They said, ‘Get off the telephone, you want to confer with your spouse,” Marshall recalled to your book. “They informed her things such as, ‘ exactly exactly How many times do we get the opportunity to do that?’ and, ‘we will just simply take care that is good of,’ therefore finally we stated, ‘OK, we’ll do so.'”

5. The trio’s provided history made filming Runaway Bride a fairly experience that is stress-free the trio, with Marshall noting an alteration in his main character, now equipped with ten years of expertise on sets along with stardom.

“Richard was in fact extremely careful on Pretty girl, but this time around he had been far more ready to be funny,” the director stated. “Mostly we chatted within our very very very own shorthand that is little. All I experienced to do had been yell ‘Action’ and ‘Shut up.'”

6. The movie’s budget soared to $70 million, an unusually high number for a romantic comedy after getting A-listers Roberts and Gere on board. As well as back-end gross on the movie, Roberts obtained $17 million on her dashes through the altar, while Gere pocketed $12 million. The movie movie stars shown worthy of the big paydays, as Runaway Bride started at number 1 during the field workplace, getting a week-end total of approximately $35 million, definitely the opening that is best ever for a Roberts movie during the time.

7. While Runaway Bride went on to gross over $150 million domestically (and $300 million globally), becoming a blockbuster hit, it received not as much as stellar reviews, with Gere later on searching right back from the film in an meeting with Entertainment Weekly and admitting, “Whatever that secret was at the very first film, you cannot make that take place. While there is some wonderful material in the film, it really did not have the secret of this very very very first one. The expectation it was likely to have that exact same variety of delicious miracle had been reckless. It absolutely was a unique movie, it had been a different sort of time, she was at a different sort of spot, I happened to be in a different sort of spot.”

8. Manufacturing descended upon the small city of Berlin, Md., making it the fictional and quirky Hale, Md. for the film, and place near to $1 million to the neighborhood economy, upped the actual property market and very nearly doubling tourism following the movie’s launch.

“we have actually been completely surprised,” Berlin’s then Chamber president told The Baltimore Sun regarding the effect the film had around town of simply 3,000 people. “the film had been the Midas touch that introduced our city to numerous individuals. It place us in the map.”

9. When known as “America’s Coolest Small Town” by Budget Travel, hosting the Roberts-Gere automobile continues to be a spot of pride for Berlin, aided by the city holding a Runaway Bride month in August to commemorate the twentieth anniversary.

“People also come in in addition they wish to hear, ‘Hey do you obtain to generally meet Richard Gere? what is Julia Roberts like? Can we come across the home? Where had been the bridal shop?'” Ivy Wells, Economic and Community developing Director of Berlin, stated. “We thought guess what happens, we are going to supply the individuals what they need and so they wish to commemorate the film therefore we’re likely to get it done up for the twentieth anniversary.”

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