Starring in several big-budget films, Hugh Grant truly became a major Hollywood movie star. But unfortunately, when compared to other A-listers like Tom Cruise, Grant’s popularity and fortune pales in front of them. Nonetheless, surprisingly enough Grant was once sent the script of Cruise’s Jerry Maguire before being scrapped off the opportunity.
Ruining his career after deliberately starring in terrible movies, to be alongside beautiful actresses, Hugh Grant mentioned why Jerry Maguire went to Tom Cruise. The 1996 romance comedy later helped Cruise earn $20M, while Grant made scandalous headlines for his romantic affair.
Hugh Grant Chose Terrible Scripts Over Jerry Maguire
During Tom Cruise‘s legendary career, he has starred in a handful of movies that helped him acquire a million-dollar fortune and the title of one of the richest Hollywood stars. Among his movies, one that stands out the most is his 1996 rom-com Jerry Maguire, which paid him a $20M fortune to star in the lead role.
However, surprisingly, the role wasn’t initially meant for Cruise, as the movie went to Hugh Grant, first. In a 2020 NPR’s Fresh Air interview, Grant revealed how he was sent the script for Jerry Maguire before it went to Cruise. Although Grant has been famous for decades, he apparently refused the role, because he rather chose terrible scripts as he wanted to get paid and work with beautiful women.
“I managed to sell out and just do highly paid terrible miniseries…They were awful and they never got really released properly. But, you know, it sounded like fun. There were pretty actresses in it that I wanted to spend time with and I did things for all the wrong motives.”
Hugh Grant revealed why he turned down the million-dollar role in Jerry Maguire and mentioned deeply regretting his decision. But, fortunately, things turned around for Grant, after he starred in Four Weddings and a Funeral.
Hugh Grant Made Scandalous Headlines For His Affair
Although Hugh Grant admitted his terrible mentality and bizarre career decisions, that caused him to lose out on Jerry Maguire that later made Tom Cruise $20M, there’s no denying the actor made scandalous headlines during his prime. Despite creating an incredibly successful career, Grant’s 1995 incident remained an indelible mark on his timeline.
Apparently, actors Hugh Grant and Elizabeth Hurley met in 1987 and dated for years until a particularly embarrassing incident where Grant was caught cheating on Hurley with a prostitute. Revealing how he was in a ‘poor frame of mind’, Grant confessed to cheating on his then-girlfriend Hurley with prostitute Divine Brown.
The actor was later arrested for paying $60 to Brown to perform s*xual acts on him in a parked car in Los Angeles. Following that incident, although the actor issued a public apology for his deeds, he felt Hollywood somewhat rejected him by framing him as a womanizer. Which landed him in great career loss compared to his co-actor.
