Did Johnny Depp stop Corey Feldman from having Leonardo DiCaprio’s career?
There is an age-old sentiment in the film industry that British child actors are treated as children first and then actors, while American child actors are treated as actors and children last. This certainly seems to be the case for many young people who grew up on screen and in the confusing Hollywood world, with the likes of Amanda Bynes, Macauley Culkin and Jeanette McCurdy having truly tragic early experiences in the industry.
Many young performers are exploited by studio executives and producers who don’t care for their well-being or are taken advantage of by their parents. They are forced into show business to earn money for their families without being fairly compensated for their work. Corey Feldman has sadly experienced this himself, describing traumatic experiences from his Hollywood childhood.
But while he is known for cult classic films like Stand By Me, The Goonies and The Lost Boys, the actor revealed the one role that he most wanted and hoped would change his career trajectory for the better, claiming that he lost out on it as a result of another actors interference in the casting process.
What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, directed by Lasse Halleström in 1993, follows a man named Gilbert Grape who has been tasked with looking after his mentally impaired younger brother. His serious life is shaken up by the presence of a free-spirited woman named Becky.
Johnny Depp and Leonardo DiCaprio were cast in the lead roles, with DiCaprio, in particular, reaching critical acclaim for his performance and earning his first Oscar nomination. Despite the fact that the pair are now infamous for their breakthrough performances in the film, Corey Feldman revealed that he was cast in DiCaprio’s role before being fired, claiming that he was sabotaged by Depp.
When discussing this, Feldman said, “He [Depp] was cast after I was, and apparently whispered into the producers’ ear that he wasn’t fond of me. He said I was a junkie and that he didn’t work with junkies and this is the first time I remember ever telling this story, so, I’m sure I’m going to get hung by this one.” Later, Feldman shared that he never watched the film and still felt “bitter” about being fired, saying, “Had I not been pushed out and done that role, who knows what would have happened from that point forward?”
The actor claimed that he was sober at the time of being fired from the production, saying, “I had just gotten sober; I just gotten out of rehab. I had turned my life around and, in fact, was trying to help River [Phoenix], who Depp was running with at the time. As we all know River’s last night on earth was at Johnny’s establishment. So, as you can imagine, there was a bit of a thorn in the side on that one.”
Feldman no doubt possessed an abundance of natural talent when he rose to fame, bringing an effortless level of charisma and humour to each role. Perhaps if he had been cast in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape then his career would have had a similar trajectory to DiCaprio’s, with the actor going on from this film to become one of the most celebrated actors of his generation.
Is there an alternate course of history in which if Feldman had been given the same opportunities, then his career would have taken off in the same way? While it isn’t always helpful to look back with the benefit of hindsight and reflect on how our lives might have differed if some things had been different, it would understandably be a tough pill to swallow if the industry didn’t nurture your talent while they continued to exploit you elsewhere.
