In 1983, Jamie Lee Curtis was rejected for a comedy. It led to some of the biggest roles of her career
Jamie Lee Curtis’s horror fame nearly worked against her when Paramount rejected her for the female lead in the comedy Trading Places, despite director John Landis wanting her for the role. Landis persuaded the studio to cast her, helping Curtis move beyond the typecasting that could have confined her career to horror.
Curtis said her connection to Halloween’s Laurie Strode led to her work with Landis, who had first hired her to present a documentary about horror-film trailers. Trading Places then helped open the way to roles in A Fish Called Wanda and True Lies. Curtis has said that her major successes remain directly connected to playing Strode.
In short
- Paramount initially turned Curtis down for Trading Places.
- Director John Landis convinced the studio to cast her.
- The comedy helped lead to A Fish Called Wanda and True Lies.
Explained simply
Jamie Lee Curtis became widely known for playing Laurie Strode, a young woman pursued by a killer in the horror film Halloween. When an actor is strongly associated with one kind of role, film studios may be less willing to cast them in very different parts.
Trading Places is a comedy directed by John Landis, about two men whose lives are switched as part of a bet. Landis wanted Curtis for the female lead, but Paramount, the studio behind the film, initially rejected her. Her casting helped broaden the kinds of roles she was offered, including parts in later comedies and action films.