47 Fun Facts About Pretty Woman

Who directed Pretty Woman?

Garry Marshall directed the 1990 film and told Richard Gere, 'In this movie, one of you moves and one of you does not. Guess which one you are?'

What was the title of J. F. Lawton's original, much darker screenplay?

Lawton's original, darker screenplay was titled 3000; the number was dropped because it sounded like a science-fiction film, and the project was retitled before release.

The film's title comes from a 1964 song by which singer?

Roy Orbison co-wrote the 1964 Monument Records hit with Bill Dees; the film borrowed the song's title, dropping its opening 'Oh'.

What is the name of Julia Roberts' character?

Julia Roberts plays Vivian Ward, a Hollywood Boulevard sex worker whom Edward Lewis hires as his companion for a week of business engagements.

What is Richard Gere's character's profession?

Edward Lewis is a corporate raider who buys struggling companies and sells them off in pieces; he is in Los Angeles to take over Jim Morse's shipbuilding firm.

Which line does Vivian deliver to the Rodeo Drive saleswomen who had snubbed her?

Returning to the boutique laden with shopping bags, Vivian asks the saleswomen 'You work on commission, right?' and tells them: 'Big mistake. Big. Huge! I have to go shopping now.'

At which hotel does Edward stay?

Edward takes the penthouse at the Regent Beverly Wilshire, on Wilshire Boulevard at Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, where Barney the manager keeps a wary eye on Vivian.

What car is Edward struggling to drive when he meets Vivian?

Edward borrows his lawyer's silver Lotus Esprit and cannot manage its manual gearbox, so Vivian, who knows cars, drives him to his hotel on their first meeting.

Who plays hotel manager Barney Thompson?

Héctor Elizondo plays manager Barney Thompson, who drills Vivian on which fork to use before her dinner with the Morses and quietly watches out for her.

Jason Alexander plays Edward's lawyer, named what?

Jason Alexander plays Philip Stuckey, Edward's abrasive lawyer, who turns on Vivian in the penthouse and is knocked down by Edward's punch.

Who plays Kit De Luca, Vivian's roommate?

Laura San Giacomo, fresh from Sex, Lies, and Videotape (1989), plays Kit De Luca, the streetwise roommate who blows Vivian's rent money on drugs.

Which veteran actor gave his final performance as shipbuilder Jim Morse?

Ralph Bellamy, a screen veteran since the early 1930s, made his final film appearance as shipbuilder Jim Morse; he died in November 1991, aged 87.

Which opera does Edward fly Vivian to see, in a city up the coast?

Edward flies Vivian by private jet to see Verdi's La Traviata; its story of a courtesan who loves a wealthy man mirrors the film's own plot, and she is moved to tears.

What sporting event does Edward take Vivian to?

Edward takes Vivian to a polo match, where his lawyer, who had suspected her of being a corporate spy, learns she is a sex worker and later propositions her.

Which Prince song does Vivian sing in the bathtub?

Vivian belts out Prince's 'Kiss' in the bubble bath with headphones on; as a prank the crew slipped away mid-take, leaving only the camera operator when she surfaced.

Which famous moment was improvised, producing Roberts' unscripted laugh?

Gere snapping the jewellery box shut on Vivian's fingers was his own unscripted joke; Roberts' startled laugh was genuine, and the director kept the take.

Who improvised the piano piece Edward plays in the hotel lobby?

Richard Gere himself wrote and played the moody piano piece Edward performs in the deserted hotel lobby late at night, the scene that ends with Vivian on the piano.

Roxette's 'It Must Have Been Love' reached what position on the Billboard Hot 100 in June 1990?

Roxette's 'It Must Have Been Love' hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in June 1990; it began as a 1987 Swedish Christmas single, reworked for the film.

Roughly how much did Pretty Woman gross worldwide?

The film grossed about $463 million worldwide, the third-biggest total of 1990 behind Ghost and Home Alone.

Which award did Julia Roberts win for the film?

Roberts won the Golden Globe for Best Actress, Comedy or Musical in January 1991; she was nominated for the Oscar and the BAFTA but lost both.

Pretty Woman was Disney's highest-grossing R-rated film for 34 years until which 2024 film passed it?

Deadpool & Wolverine, Disney's first R-rated Marvel Studios release, passed it in 2024 on the way to more than $1.3 billion worldwide; Terminator 2 had taken the overall R-rated crown back in 1991.

Which Disney studio chief insisted the dark script be rewritten as a modern fairy tale?

Jeffrey Katzenberg, chairman of Walt Disney Studios from 1984 to 1994, insisted the bleak script be reworked as a modern fairy tale and love story rather than a drama.

In Lawton's original script, how did the story end?

Lawton's original script ended bleakly: Edward dumps Vivian back on the street, and the last image is Vivian and her friend on a bus to Disneyland, staring blankly ahead.

Which actor read with Roberts before turning down the role of Edward?

Al Pacino did a reading opposite Roberts but declined the part; Sylvester Stallone, Burt Reynolds and Denzel Washington were also considered before Gere was cast.

Who was the studio's and Marshall's top choice for Vivian, who turned it down?

Meg Ryan was the top choice of both the studio and Marshall but turned the part down; Winona Ryder and Jennifer Connelly were judged too young for Vivian.

Which actress got as far as costume fittings for Vivian before scheduling conflicts intervened?

Diane Lane was fitted for costumes as Vivian but had to withdraw over a scheduling conflict; Daryl Hannah had already passed, feeling the role degraded women.

Whom did Marshall originally envision as Vivian?

Marshall first pictured Karen Allen, the Raiders of the Lost Ark star, as Vivian; when she declined, the search widened to nearly every young actress in Hollywood.

How old was Julia Roberts when she won the role?

Her only credits were Mystic Pizza and the unreleased Steel Magnolias.

What was the film's budget?

The film was budgeted at about $14 million and shot around Los Angeles between July 24 and October 18, 1989.

Which future Simpsons voice actor made his film debut as a detective?

Hank Azaria, later the voice of Moe and Chief Wiggum on The Simpsons, made his film debut as the detective investigating the death of a fellow sex worker of Vivian's.

What does Edward serve with champagne on Vivian's first night in the penthouse?

Edward has room service bring champagne and strawberries; he tells Vivian the fruit brings out the flavour of the champagne, and she obediently nibbles one.

How did the director get Roberts to laugh during the I Love Lucy scene?

Roberts could not laugh naturally at I Love Lucy on cue, so the director did what worked: he tickled her feet off-camera until the giggles were real.

Vivian's childhood fantasy, which the ending replays, involves being rescued by what?

As a girl Vivian dreamed a knight on a white horse would climb her tower; Edward replays it by scaling her fire escape from a white limousine, and she 'rescues him right back'.

Where is Vivian planning to move at the end of the film, to get a job and a diploma?

Vivian tells Kit she is moving to San Francisco to get a job and finish school, and has already packed when Edward's limousine pulls up outside her apartment.

Which restaurant, later renamed Cicada, hosted the escargot scene?

The dinner with the Morses was filmed at Rex II Ristorante in the Oviatt Building on South Olive Street, downtown Los Angeles, later reopened as Cicada.

The film's rags-to-riches structure echoes which George Bernard Shaw play?

Like Shaw's Pygmalion, the film has a wealthy man remake a working-class woman's manners and speech, a template My Fair Lady had already carried to the screen.

Who wrote the music and lyrics for the 2018 Broadway musical?

Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance, the songwriting team behind 'Summer of '69', wrote the score; the book was by the film's director and its screenwriter.

Who played Vivian in the musical's Broadway debut?

Samantha Barks, from the 2012 Les Misérables film, opened as Vivian at Broadway's Nederlander Theatre in August 2018 opposite Steve Kazee's Edward.

After agreeing Vivian's fee, Edward admits he would have paid how much?

Once the deal is struck, Vivian admits she would have stayed for two thousand and Edward replies, 'I would have paid four' — $4,000 for the week.

For how many consecutive weeks was Pretty Woman number one at the UK box office?

In Australia it topped the chart for 12 weeks.

Which Red Hot Chili Peppers song appears on the soundtrack?

The Chili Peppers' funk-rock 'Show Me Your Soul', recorded in 1989, sits on the soundtrack beside Go West's 'King of Wishful Thinking' and Natalie Cole's 'Wild Women Do'.

Who served as Roberts' body double for the risqué scenes and the poster?

Shelley Michelle doubled for Roberts in the nude scenes, and the poster pairs Roberts' head with Michelle's body; Gere's grey hair was retouched darker on it.

Which critic later admitted his original 'D' grade was too harsh and would now give the film a 'B'?

Owen Gleiberman, reviewing for Entertainment Weekly in 1990, graded the film D; revisiting it years later he called that too harsh and said he would give it a B.

Interior scenes set in the Beverly Wilshire lobby were actually shot where in Los Angeles?

The lobby interiors were shot at the Ambassador Hotel on Wilshire Boulevard, the 1921 landmark that housed the Cocoanut Grove; it had closed in January 1989 and was demolished in 2005.

Which of these actors tested for the role of Edward alongside Julia Roberts?

Tom Conti and Charles Grodin also tested; Gere refused at first until Roberts persuaded him in person.

For how many weeks did Pretty Woman stay in the US box-office top ten?

It was number one in Australia for 12 weeks and returned to the US top spot in its sixth weekend.

Which label released Pretty Woman on VHS in October 1990?

Touchstone Home Video, Disney's label for its adult-skewing releases, put the film on VHS in October 1990; it went on to become 1991's best-selling US video.