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The “crazy” actor Michael Douglas refused to work with: “I just couldn’t take a gamble”
While producing *Romancing the Stone*, Michael Douglas decided against casting Debra Winger as the lead, Joan Wilder, because he worried her unpredictable behaviour could put the jungle shoot at risk. Kathleen Turner ultimately played the novelist, whose sister’s kidnapping draws her into an adventure in Colombia.
Douglas later recalled meeting Winger for dinner while they were discussing the role. After she playfully bit his arm, he told the studio he could not take the gamble of filming with her in the jungle; the article notes that Winger was among the studio’s preferred candidates.
In short
- Douglas worried Winger could be unpredictable on a jungle shoot.
- He recalled she bit his arm during dinner.
- Kathleen Turner was cast as Joan Wilder.
Explained simply
Romancing the Stone is a 1984 adventure film about Joan Wilder, a romance novelist whose sister is kidnapped. Joan travels to Colombia, where she becomes caught up in a dangerous search and meets adventurer Jack T. Colton.
Michael Douglas produced the film, and Kathleen Turner played Joan. Debra Winger was one of the actors considered for the part, but Douglas later said he decided against casting her because he feared her behaviour could disrupt a demanding jungle shoot.