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This Jerry Maguire trivia quiz has 50 free questions with answers and follows the 1996 film from the mission statement that gets Jerry fired to the $11.2 million contract that makes Rod Tidwell cry on television. The plot questions cover Bob Sugar's coup, the Cushman handshake, Dorothy's move to San Diego that never happens, the Christmas Day game against Dallas, the divorcee support group and the little boy who thinks the human head weighs eight pounds. Then it goes behind the camera: the real agent and client who inspired the story, the Disney memo, why Tom Hanks didn't play Jerry, who nearly played Dorothy and Rod, and the Eagles guitarist and Rolling Stone founder hiding in the cast. The last stretch takes in Nancy Wilson's score, the Aimee Mann song that was cut, Springsteen's 'Secret Garden', the Reebok commercial that vanished, the box office, Cuba Gooding Jr.'s Oscar, the AFI-ranked quotes and the art collective hoarding 40,000 VHS copies. Every answer has been checked against the film's Wikipedia page, and each explanation adds one detail worth remembering.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01Who wrote and directed Jerry Maguire?
Cameron Crowe
Brooks produced; Crowe kept a production journal for Rolling Stone and had already made Say Anything... and Singles.
Q 02In which year was Jerry Maguire released?
1996
It opened on 13 December and finished as the ninth-highest-grossing film of the year.
Q 03Who plays Rod Tidwell, the disgruntled receiver who becomes Jerry's only client?
Cuba Gooding Jr.
All three of the others were considered or auditioned for the part; the winner took home the Oscar.
Q 04Which NFL team does Rod Tidwell play for?
Arizona Cardinals
Rod is a wide receiver who feels underpaid, and his contract fight is the spine of the film.
Q 05Which actress plays Dorothy Boyd, the single mother who follows Jerry out of the office?
Renée Zellweger
It was her breakout role; the other three were all considered for it, along with Uma Thurman, Cameron Diaz and Jennifer Lopez.
Q 06Which child actor plays Dorothy's son Ray?
Jonathan Lipnicki
He went on to voice Stuart Little's brother George and star in The Little Vampire and Like Mike.
Q 07Who plays Bob Sugar, the protégé sent to fire Jerry?
Jay Mohr
The firing sets off a frantic phone race to keep Jerry's clients, which Sugar wins on every line but one.
Q 08Which actor plays Frank 'Cush' Cushman, the quarterback prospect expected to go first in the draft?
Jerry O'Connell
Beau Bridges plays his father, uncredited; the pair secretly sign with Bob Sugar the night before the draft.
Q 09Who plays Avery Bishop, Jerry's fiancée at the start of the film?
Kelly Preston
Diane Lane was considered for the part; Avery famously refuses to be dumped without a fight.
Q 10Which pop star was initially cast as Rod's wife Marcee before the role went to Regina King?
Janet Jackson
The film still nods to her twice: a Janet poster in Teepee's room and Rod asking 'What have you done for me lately?'
Q 11Who plays Laurel, Dorothy's sister who hosts the divorced women's support group?
Bonnie Hunt
Garofalo was considered for Dorothy herself but judged too old; the support group ends up as the audience for the film's most famous line.
Q 12What is the name of the agency Jerry works for at the start of the film?
Sports Management International
SMI's management sends Bob Sugar to do the firing after Jerry's mission statement circulates.
Q 13What triggers Jerry's late-night epiphany and mission statement?
Criticism from an injured player's son
Q 21Which real sports agent, who also served as technical consultant, inspired the film?
Leigh Steinberg
The trigger was an episode with his client Tim McDonald in the 1993 season, when NFL free agency arrived; McDonald has a cameo, and so does Rosenhaus.
Q 22Jerry's mission statement was partly inspired by a 28-page 1991 memo written at Disney by whom?
Jeffrey Katzenberg
The real memo, on the runaway cost of blockbusters, leaked and embarrassed the studio much as Jerry's does.
Q 23Crowe wrote the screenplay for which actor, who turned it down to direct That Thing You Do!?
Tom Hanks
The memo argues for fewer clients and more caring relationships, which is precisely how he ends up with one client and no money.
Q 14Why does Jerry lose Cushman despite a personal visit to the family home?
They secretly signed with Bob Sugar
The father had insisted on a handshake deal instead of a contract, then signed with Sugar after watching Jerry spend draft night promoting Rod.
Q 15How much is the lowball contract extension that Rod and Marcee turn down?
$1.4 million
They choose to play out the final year and hit free agency, with Jerry warning that an injury would leave them with nothing.
Q 16Where does Dorothy plan to move for a more secure job with health benefits?
San Diego
Jerry proposes partly so she can share his health insurance, which is not the most romantic reason to marry.
Q 17Rod's season-defining touchdown comes in a Christmas Day Monday Night Football game against which team?
Dallas Cowboys
He is knocked out on the play, then comes round and dances for the crowd, and the televised recovery changes everything.
Q 18Dorothy says 'You had me at hello' in front of what audience?
Her sister's divorcee support group
Her actress said she initially thought the line was a typo in the script and couldn't work out how to say it.
Q 19How much is the contract Rod learns about while appearing on the TV show Up Close?
$11.2 million
The deal lets him finish his career in Arizona, and the host who breaks the news is real sportscaster Roy Firestone.
Q 20In the final scene, Jerry and Dorothy notice Ray's strong throw and discuss his future in which sport?
Baseball
In the NFL's 2017 mockumentary sequel, an adult Ray instead owns a boxing gym.
The script took so long that the intended star moved on; Woody Harrelson was also offered the part and passed.
Q 24Rod Tidwell was partially modelled on which former Washington receiver?
Charley Taylor
Art Monk appears in the film as himself, alongside Troy Aikman, Drew Bledsoe and Warren Moon.
Q 25The choice for Dorothy came down to two actresses. Who lost out?
Connie Britton
Sorvino was also in the running until the producers refused to meet her fee.
Q 26Which legendary director was considered for the part of Jerry's mentor Dicky Fox?
Billy Wilder
The role went to Jared Jussim; Wilder was 90 at the time and had not made a film since 1981.
Q 27The film's score was written by Crowe's then-wife, a member of which rock band?
Heart
Nancy Wilson also scored his Almost Famous and Vanilla Sky.
Q 28Aimee Mann's 'Wise Up' was recorded for the film but dropped by Crowe. Which 1999 film later used it?
Magnolia
Crowe had loved the piano demo for an airport scene, but the finished version felt 'too big' for it; it still made the soundtrack album.
Q 29Which Bruce Springsteen song was re-released after the film and reached No. 19 on the Billboard Hot 100?
Secret Garden
The track dated from 1995; a music video for it is on the two-disc Special Edition DVD.
Q 30Which sportswear company gave TriStar over $1.5M in marketing, only for its ad to be cut from the theatrical release?
Reebok
Worse, the theatrical cut kept Rod's tirade against the brand; the ad was reinstated for TV airings and as a DVD extra.