When Jack Nicholson couldn’t get an audition for ‘The Graduate’: “I remember how furious I was”
There comes a point for some actors where they begin to spend less time in audition rooms and more time on the phone, being offered roles purely based on their reputation and existing body of work, without the need to try out for the part. For the likes of Denzel Washington, Leonardo DiCaprio and Nicole Kidman, the sheer magnitude of their screen presence and list of performances is enough to guarantee them a consistent level of work, being invited to collaborate with some of the greatest filmmakers of all time.
However, Jack Nicholson once had a rather frustrating experience when he discovered that all his friends had booked an audition for an infamous role that he couldn’t even get an interview for.
Nicholson is one of the most revered actors of all time, with a staggering list of credits that has led him to be widely considered one of the greatest performers of all time. With a fluid ability to morph between emotional extremes while also capturing the subtlety of these changes, his creative range has been showcased in films like Chinatown, The Shining, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and Five Easy Pieces. However, despite being a Hollywood heavyweight for many years, the actor struggled to get his foot in the door for one project directed by Mike Nichols, which is now known as his titular masterpiece.
Directed in 1967, The Graduate was a film shrouded in mystery and controversy, with the story of the affair between Benjamin and Mrs Robinson going down in history. It captures a unique shift in history as people began to move away from the ideals of the past and carve out a new future, with Benjamin’s secret relationship reflecting his rejection of the traditional values held by his parents and moving towards a modern equilibrium, trying to find his own personhood away from the stifling influence of his parents plans for him.
While Dustin Hoffman is perhaps most recognisable for his part in the film, with the final shot going down in cinematic history as he flashes between hope and the crushing realisation of what he has done, Nicholson was also pining for the role, despite not getting anywhere with the casting directors.
When describing this, Nicholson said, “I remember how furious I was: I sat up with [Henry] Jaglom up at the Old World ice cream parlour at a table – there were five or six of us actors; like we were there every day – and they had all had an interview for The Graduate and I couldn’t get an interview. After my first interview with Solly Viano, which concluded with the following statement, “Well, Jack, you seem good, very unusual. Frankly, I don’t know what we’d need ya for, but if we need ya, we’ll need ya bad”. You have a very different image of who you are in the face of that kind of rejection. I didn’t think I was all that strange.”
At this point in his career, Nicholson was not yet the titan that he became, with recent success on smaller films like Flight to Fury, Back Door to Hell and Ride in the Whirlwind. While he possessed undeniable talent, perhaps the decision not to include him was the best one, with Hoffman displaying a more wounded level of vulnerability and the appearance of someone who is unsure of themselves, which is perfect in capturing the tepid rebellion of Benjamin.
