The role Jack Nicholson was devastated he didn’t get to play: “A mega hit”
During the 1970s, Jack Nicholson reigned over Hollywood as one of the most prominent leading men to grace the silver screen.
After cutting his teeth in the indie world of Roger Corman and counterculture cinema in the previous decade, he earned recognition with a supporting performance in Easy Rider, Dennis Hopper’s classic biker tale that explored the futility and the violence wrapped up in the American Dream.
For Nicholson, however, the American dream – something encapsulated by the bright lights of the film industry – came true, and he earned endless acclaim as the ultimate embodiment of the New Hollywood era. From Five Easy Pieces to The Last Detail, Chinatown, and his Oscar-winning role in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Nicholson appeared in many movies that have since gone down in cinema history as unforgettable pieces of art, all led by his incredible performances.
The actor has the ability to deliver exactly what’s needed from him with effortless ease, even when the characters he’s assigned are incredibly intense and unpredictable. He proved his brilliance for playing terrifying and unhinged characters in 1980’s The Shining, portraying the mentally unstable Jack Torrance to acclaim and putting a very sinister spin on “Here’s Johnny!”
While he continued to take on many acclaimed and award-winning roles in the coming years, like many actors, there were parts that he missed out on that he deeply wished he could’ve played. While you’d think that someone as successful as Nicholson would’ve been able to land any role he so desired, Hollywood doesn’t work that way. Sometimes, an actor isn’t right for the part, scheduling conflicts get in the way, or actors simply don’t gel together.
For Nicholson, it was a case of scheduling issues that prevented him from being able to star in Hoosiers, which he desperately wanted to be in. The actor wanted to portray Coach Norman Dale, a role that inevitably went to Gene Hackman, who played the part to perfection. The movie even co-starred Hopper, one of Nicholson’s long-time friends and collaborators, but it just wasn’t meant to be.
Talking to the Indianapolis Star, director David Anspaugh revealed that Nicholson, a friend of his, was sent the script, but it took him a few weeks to respond. The filmmaker had simply hoped for some advice from the actor, but it turned out, he actually wanted to star in it, too. “The funny thing is, he called me up a few weeks later, and basically told me he wanted to do the movie.”
Anspaugh explained that it soon became clear that they were not going to be able to work together on the film. “Jack called me and said, ‘Look, I know you want to go in the fall. I won’t be available because I have to stop working right now. So, if you don’t find the right person and we end up doing it next year, we can address it then.’” With no time to lose, Anspaugh looked for someone else, and luckily, Hackman was the right fit. Still, who knows what the movie would’ve looked like with Nicholson in the lead?
Anspaugh revealed Nicholson’s response to the film: “He comes over and he said, ‘Spaugh, I’ve seen your movie and it was great. The kids were great. Hopper was great. You really got to the people with this one.’”
Nicholson told him, “You did it yourself. I’m really proud of you,” to which Anspaugh said, “Well, I always wonder what it would have been had you done it.” The director concluded, “And then he put his arm around me, I was sitting down, and he put his arm around me, and that eyebrow goes up. And he just said, ‘A mega hit, kid, a mega hit.’”
