# In 1987, Steven Spielberg was forced to quit his next movie. $400 million and four Oscars later, he wished he hadn’t

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/in-1987-steven-spielberg-was-forced-to-quit-his-next-movie-400-million-and-four-oscars-later-he-wished-he-hadnt/
- Published: 2026-11-07T18:15:00+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-07T19:37:14+00:00
- Original publisher: Far Out
- Original article: https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/steven-spielberg-quit-next-movie-400-million-4-oscars-later-wished-he-hadnt/
- Topics: Entertainment, Film

## Key points

- Spielberg left Rain Man to direct Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
- Rain Man earned about $400 million and won four Oscars.
- Spielberg later said he wondered if he should have chosen differently.

## Summary

Steven Spielberg left Rain Man in 1987 to honour a commitment to direct Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade for George Lucas. The decision meant missing out on a film that later won major Oscars, a loss Spielberg said he regretted.

Spielberg had worked on Rain Man for about a year and a half before stepping aside, with Barry Levinson taking over and directing Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman. The film earned about $400 million, was nominated for eight Academy Awards and won four, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor for Hoffman. Spielberg later won Best Picture and Best Director for Schindler’s List.

---
Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.