An actor since the age of 15, Kate Winslet has achieved a spectacular position in Hollywood with commendable success and respect following her everywhere she goes. Renowned for her Oscar-nominated role in Titanic, the now-47-year-old actress has bagged one too many Academy Award-nominated roles in the short span of her career. And among those roles includes one that was denied by Nicole Kidman due to safety concerns, and this time she won.
Apparently, The Hours actress felt uncomfortable doing the lead role in the $108M movie The Reader, that later went to Winslet instead because Kidman was too concerned about how it would affect her unborn child.
The Lead Role In The Reader Was First Offered To Kate Winslet
A $108M superhit movie directed by Stephen Daldry, The Reader‘s lead role was first offered to none other than Kate Winslet herself. Recalling her first encounter with the book (on which the film was based) way before the creation of the movie, Winslet said,
“The role, the character, the novel first came to my attention six years ago, when I was pregnant with our son Joe. I was absolutely gripped and compelled and ultimately devastated by the novel and immediately thought, ‘Oh, well, somebody must be making this into a movie. I wonder who’s going to play Hanna Schmitz?’”
As it turned out, the Titanic actress found herself to be the lucky one who got offered Hanna Schmitz’s role. Sharing her reaction when she was offered the role, the Oscar winner said,
“At the time I was 27, and 27 and 32– I don’t know, that seemed like such a big gap. Years later, in April of last year, when Stephen wanted to talk to me about this, I was so shocked. My immediate thing was, ‘I can’t play that part! I’m too young. Well, wait a minute. I am that character’s age now. My God.’”
But that amazed reaction of Winslet’s couldn’t stay for long as at that time she was already scheduled to work on her other blockbuster, Revolutionary Road. Thus, the Oscar-winning role ended up in Nicole Kidman’s lap.
Nicole Kidman Refused The Oscar-Winning Role For Safety Concerns
While Winslet turned down the role due to a previously scheduled movie, Nicole Kidman had her own concerns about rejecting the role. When she was offered the part, The Hours actress was pregnant and didn’t find it appropriate to act throughout that time. Kidman said,
“I got pregnant and I was meant to do The Reader. And they said, ‘Oh, can you still do it?’ But I cannot work pregnant. The way I would, it would penetrate my baby.”
As Kidman chose her family over the Oscar-winning part, Hanna Schmitz’s role circled its way back to Kate Winslet, who was able to do it along with her part in Revolutionary Road by readjusting her schedule. The Reader ended up winning five Academy Awards including Winslet’s Best Actor award.
You can watch The Reader on Amazon Instant Video.
Source: CheatSheet
