Actors and actresses often come across projects whose filming ends up making them quite uncomfortable and Minnie Driver is no exception. Back in 1998, the actress starred in Mikael Salomon’s heist action-thriller, Hard Rain. While the film didn’t perform well at the box office, bringing in less than $20 million, this was far from what soured Minnie Driver’s memories of the film.
According to Minnie Driver, she was made to go through some serious uncomfortable working situations. Apparently, she was not allowed to wear a wet suit underneath her clothes, unlike other actors, despite the fact that they were filming with rain machines. And when Minnie Driver decided to push back, she felt as if she was being punished for speaking up.
Minnie Driver Talks about her Hard Rain Experience
While the reality is that Hard Rain was met with buckloads of negativity upon its release, there are a select few who would go out of their way to defend the film. However, you will not find Minnie Driver amongst the film’s defenders for a completely different reason.
During her recent appearance on Jameela Jamil’s I Weigh podcast, Driver claimed that the film’s producers didn’t allow her to wear a wet suit underneath her clothes while all the other actors got to do so. Why? Well, according to the actress, the producers said no because they wanted the audience to see Driver’s n-pples. After all, nudity sells.
Despite having to film in “20 million gallons of water,” Driver stated,
“It’s set during this massive storm, there were huge rain machines. We shot crazy hours. It was tough. Everybody else could wear a wetsuit underneath their costume, and I was told by the producers that I couldn’t because they wanted to see my n-pples, and that there was no point in having the wet T-shirt if you couldn’t have what was underneath it.”
While she didn’t name and shame the producers behind the said demand, Ian Bryce, Mark Gordon, and Gary Levinsohn are the three credited producers on the film.
Minnie Driver Claims She Was Made to Feel Like an Idiot
Driver was not going to comply with the producer’s alleged wishes that easily. As she pushed back, the Good Will Hunting actress stated that she was made to feel like “an idiot” and a diva.
She revealed that she called up her agent and narrated the entire fiasco. Driver recalls that after rightfully complaining about the unrealistic demand, people on set would not talk to her properly and she felt as if she was being “punished” for taking a stand.
“I remember saying this is wrong. I remember calling my agent. I then remember it being like, boy, people wouldn’t speak to me on the set. I was so punished for it. It was leaked to the press that I called and complained about conditions, but it was as if there was nothing to complain about and I was just complaining.”
Talking about the imperious gaslighting that sometimes takes place in the film industry, Driver stated that in the end, she felt as if she was the one in the wrong.
“It’s this gaslighting. Media gaslighting that’s supported by the environment that you’re in. So, you turn on yourself, like, ‘It’s my fault for saying anything you stupid big mouth. You should’ve shut up.’”
However, Hard Rain’s costume designer Kathleen Detoro told Variety that “full wetsuits and pieces” were given to all members of the cast and crew. Driver’s representatives have yet to respond.
You can rent/buy Hard Rain on Prime Video.
