Before he was a household name,Kevin Costnergot his big acting break in 1987, but only after Don Johnson turned down the same role. Looking back, it’s hard to remember a time when Kevin Costner wasn’t one of the biggest stars in Hollywood.Costner’s best filmsinclude some of thebest Western movies ever made, some great dramas, and more than a few iconic sports movies. He’s been a superstar for decades now, and like every other superstar, he owes it all to a single breakthrough role. Unlike other actors, however, Costner almost didn’t get the part in his breakthrough movie.
Don Johnson was originally offered the role that turned Kevin Costner into a superstar, and that decision ended up having mixed results. Just nine years later, both Johnson and Costner appeared in their first and only movie together, the golf comedyTin Cup. Costner was actually the main lead and romantic interest ofTin Cup, while Johnson took a supporting role as the movie’s main antagonist. If Don Johnson hadn’t turned down his chance to star inThe Untouchables, however, the roles may have been reversed.
Brian De Palma Wanted To Cast Don Johnson In The Untouchables
De Palma Wanted Johnson To Play Eliot Ness Because Of His Miami Vice Fame
Brian De Palma’s 1987 historical crime filmThe Untouchableslaunched Kevin Costner’s career. Costner wasn’t De Palma’s first choice to play Eliot Ness, however. In a documentary about his career,De Palma said that he originally wanted to cast Don Johnson in the lead role instead of Costner(viaEntertainment Weekly). Johnson was extremely famous at the time because of his ongoing role inMiami Viceas Sonny Crockett. Johnson had already proven that he could lead a sprawling crime drama and attract audiences, while Costner was still a relative newcomer with only a few supporting roles in films likeSilverado.
However, Don Johnson turnedThe Untouchablesdown.Johnson said that he felt the character of Eliot Ness, a lawman, was too similar to Sonny Crockett inMiami Vice, and he feared thatThe Untouchableswould lead to him being typecasted(viaCollider). Art Linson, a producer ofThe Untouchables, already felt that Costner was right for the role. After Johnson turned the part down, De Palma called Steven Spielberg and Lawrence Kasdan - both of whom had worked with Costner before - and they convinced De Palma that Costner was good enough to carry the whole movie on his back.
The Untouchables Turned Kevin Costner Into A True Movie Star
Costner Became Hollywood’s Biggest Leading Man In The Late 1980s & 1990s
Once Kevin Costner actually secured the part of Eliot Ness inThe Untouchables, it was gold for his career.Prior to 1987, whenThe Untouchableswas released, Costner had only had supporting roles in relatively smaller films. He starred in an episode of Spielberg’sAmazing Stories, he starred in the relatively successful biking movieAmerican Flyers, and he became one of manyA-list actors who were cut out of moviesinThe Big Chill. Costner’s character was supposed to have several flashback appearances, but he was only in the film briefly as a corpse.The Untouchableschanged the trajectory of Costner’s entire career.
AfterThe Untouchables, Costner was the hottest actor in Hollywood. In the next two years, Costner starred in two of thebest baseball movies ever made:Bull DurhamandField of Dreams. A year later, he starred in arguably his magnum opus,Dances with Wolves. From there, it was a cakewalk.Costner simply couldn’t stop leading hit movies in the 1990s: he starred inRobin Hood: Prince of Thieves,JFK,A Perfect World, and many more. OnceThe Untouchablesproved just how magnetic and charming Kevin Costner was, his acting career simply took off.
The Untouchables Is Still One Of Kevin Costner’s Greatest Movies
The Untouchables Is An All-Time Great Crime Movie & One Of Costner’s Best Ensemble Performances
The Untouchablesmay have been a springboard for the rest of Kevin Costner’s acting career, but it was hardly forgotten. In fact,The Untouchablesis still one of Costner’s best movies, even after nearly four decades and over 50 more movies. Everything about it is great. The cast ofThe Untouchables, which included Sean Connery, Robert De Niro, Andy Garcia, Patricia Clarkson, and more, was phenomenal. De Palma’s direction was fantastic, and there are so many visually stunning and brilliant shots in the movie. Plus, it’s a great story about how a real group of cops took down the most notorious gangster in the world.
All of its emotional beats, its coolest moments, and the very reason the film was made was on Kevin Costner’s shoulders in The Untouchables, and he never shrugged once.
Not only wasThe Untouchablesa fantastic movie in its own right, but Kevin Costner was also tremendous in it. He has so many nearly perfect line deliveries, from “He’s in the car,” to “Never stop fighting til the fight is done!“De Palma was also right to worry, as the Eliot Ness character is the entire foundation ofThe Untouchables, but Costner was perfectly suited to the task. All of its emotional beats, its coolest moments, and the very reason the film was made was onKevin Costner’s shoulders inThe Untouchables, and he never shrugged once.
