Cinema adaptations of Stephen King Novels have been a highlight for the careers of a variety of actors including Jack Nicholson, Kathy Bates, Bill Skarsgard, Tom HanksAnd Sissy Spacek. However, an intriguing “what if” scenario almost included actors and comedians John Candy played the lead role in the 1996 film thinnerfrom Night of terror And Child’s play director Tom Holland. Luckily for him, turning down the role seems to have been a wise decision.

Based on King’s 1984 novel, written under the pseudonym Richard Bachman, thinner tells the story of Billy Halleck, an overweight lawyer who accidentally kills an elderly Roma woman, Suzanne Lempke, while distracted behind the wheel. After Halleck is acquitted of manslaughter due to his connections to the judge and the local police, he is cursed by the dead woman’s father. The The curse causes Billy to lose weight uncontrollably until he is essentially a skeletonno matter how much food he eats.

Why did Stephen King want John Candy there? thinner?

Earlier this year, Scream Factory released a Collector’s Edition Blu-ray of the Holland film with a special commentary from the producer Mitchell Galinwho also produced another of King’s adaptations, The night flyer. In the interview, Galin reveals that Stephen King originally wanted John Candy, one of the most popular comedians of his time, to play the role of Billy Halleck. King joked, “We’ll pay him (Candy) a nice sum of money and save his life.” But Galin explains that this was more than just a joke. The thinner The crew members really wanted Candy to play the lead role, but did not receive positive feedback from Candy.

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It will warm your heart as much as it will make you laugh.

Galin continues: “The fact is that he didn’t like the material or didn’t want to do it; Whatever the reason, you respect it. So we reached out to him, but didn’t get any positive feedback, and then we started looking for the lead, and I was a big fan of Robert Burke.” Regardless of whether Candy made the right or wrong decision, According to Galin, there wasn’t much else to do but respect the actor’s creative decision and move on. The role was ultimately awarded Robert John Burke from Robocop 3 Fame.

Candy made the right decision in turning down the horror role

King’s comments suggest that the team The main motivation for casting Candy was less about his acting and more about using his weight for the role. Candy, best known for films like Planes, trains and automobiles, Uncle BuckAnd Home aloneHe is often considered one of the best actors in the comedy genre. Candy’s charm and talent went far beyond his physicality and looks. In recent years, many actors have spoken out about feeling pressure to lose weight for their careers, and Hollywood’s tendency to refer to actors as “fat boyfriends.”

Candy’s health was likely a major factor in his decision to turn down the role. To play a convincing portrayal of Billy Halleck, he would have had to lose an enormous amount of weight in a short period of time look like Billy’s skeletal figure at the end of the film. Robert John Burke, who wore a fat suit when the character was at his heaviest, actually lost about 20 pounds during filming. The role would likely have been quite physically demanding for Candy, who sadly passed away two years before the film’s release. Similar conversations have been had about actor Tom Hanks, who was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in 2013. Medical experts said his dramatic weight loss and weight gain from film roles may have affected his health.

thinner is often considered one of the worst Stephen King film adaptations, especially when compared to other films like The shining one, miseryAnd The Shawshank Redemption. Some critics have suggested taking on the campy role thinner could have damaged Candy’s reputation in Hollywood. Ultimately, John Candy was right when he said no to the role of Billy Halleck, not only because the film was a flop with audiences, but also because it would have made a spectacle of his weight and potentially endangered his health.

thinner is available to stream on Paramount+ in the US

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An overweight lawyer is cursed by a gypsy to lose weight quickly and uncontrollably.

Release date

Pour

Robert John Burke, Joe Mantegna, Lucinda Jenney, Bethany Joy Lenz, Time Winters, Howard Erskine, Terrence Garmey, Randy Jurgensen

Duration

93 minutes