John Cusack sets the record straight on whether he was once considered for ‘The Breakfast Club’ role
John Cusack has clarified that he was never formally offered the role of John Bender in *The Breakfast Club*. He recalled that director John Hughes may have considered him for it and said he would have accepted, but the casting went another way; Judd Nelson played Bender in the 1985 film.
Cusack had appeared in Hughes’ *Sixteen Candles* the previous year, and said his parents helped keep him grounded during his teenage years. His father, actor Dick Cusack, taught him to focus on scripts and roles rather than celebrity. Now 60, Cusack also said he feels American cinema has recently “gone flat”, despite praising films made elsewhere.
- Cusack says he was considered, but not formally offered Bender.
- Judd Nelson played the role in the 1985 film.
- Cusack says American cinema has recently “gone flat”.