The movie that stopped James Stewart from quitting acting
Much like the plot of It’s a Wonderful Life, there was nearly a world that was never touched by the timeless magic of James Stewart and his performances in the beloved Christmas film. The actor is one of the most infamous leading men from the golden era of Hollywood, frequently working with Alfred Hitchcock on the likes of Vertigo, Rear Window and Rope. However, Stewart came close to quitting acting entirely but was miraculously pulled away from this decision by one specific project.
It’s a Wonderful Life follows a suicidal businessman called George Bailey who meets a guardian angel that shows him an alternate reality in which he hadn’t been born. It reminds Bailey of all the ways in which he has touched the world, also touching the hearts of audiences around the world and becoming one of the most rewatched films around the festive season.
However, Stewart came close to quitting acting entirely just weeks before being cast in the movie. After finding success in his earlier projects, the actor was then drafted into the war and served as a private in the Air Force from 1941. After he returned to the film industry, he struggled to see the validity of acting as a profession after being exposed to the horrors of war, seeing it as a ‘frivolous’ job.
Donna Reed stars in the movie alongside Stewart, with her daughter Mary Anne saying that, “There was a lot of insecurity on set, because Jimmy Stewart wasn’t sure if he wanted to act anymore. He thought it was too frivolous, but Lionel Barrymore and others talked him into it.”
Barrymore plays Mr Potter in the film, and also participated in the war effort. But despite Stewart’s reservations about acting, he found himself accepting the role, and later became known as the everyman of American cinema, adapting to the challenges that faced the many different heroes he played.
While the film is hugely successful now, it initially flopped at the box office, and it took a few years before people woke up to its genius. As well as this, Frank Capra’s production company also went bankrupt, which probably didn’t ease Stewart’s mind over his decision to continue acting. Regardless, Stewart shortly went on to star in Harvey and Anatomy of a Murder, beginning a long and fruitful collaboration with Alfred Hitchcock, discovering a new depth to his talent beneath the restrained and troubled exterior of John Ferguson and the curious charm of LB Jefferies.
He is still known as one of the most iconic leading men of all time, acting alongside Katherine Hepburn, Ginger Rogers and Grace Kelly, with a stoic yet natural screen presence that captures the standards of masculinity at the time, remaining pragmatic and unemotional yet with unchartered depths that reveal the true vulnerabilities of each conflicted character. Actors like Marlon Brando and Cary Grant have cited Stewart as a lasting inspiration, with an indistinguishable flare that has changed the landscape of Hollywood as we know it. And without It’s A Wonderful Life, who knows if this talent would ever have been explored to the fullest.
