Pretty Woman is one of those movies that I can watch over and over. It never gets stale or dull.
But considering how many times I’ve seen it, it’s kind of strange that I’ve never noticed these bloopers and mistakes that tell a different side of the film.
Disney Changed Everything
Pretty Woman became a romantic comedy that won over millions and made Richard Gere and Julia Roberts superstars. But that’s not how it was originally supposed to be. The original screenplay was called 3,000 and was written by then-struggling screenwriter J.F. Lawton. The early draft dealt with much darker themes about social inequality and corporate greed.
However, everything changed when Disney took over. The company wanted to play down the themes of class and sex work in Los Angeles. Instead, Disney gave it a big budget and turned it more into a romantic comedy.
Al Pacino Turned Down The Lead Role
For me, it’s hard to imagine anyone other than Richard Gere in the role of Edward Lewis, the super-rich businessman from New York who hires Vivian (Julia Roberts) to be his escort for a week.
The casting process for Pretty Woman took longer than expected. Al Pacino was initially in the running for the role of Lewis. The legendary actor even did a casting reading with Julia Roberts before finally deciding to turn the part down.
Although he liked the script, Pacino never said why he passed on the role. Looking back, he has said nice things about Roberts, who was a relatively unknown actress at the time.
“I mean, you could tell at the reading, this is going to be good, this is going to be a hit picture. You just knew it,” Pacino said.
He also said, “And this girl was phenomenal. I mean, I said to Gary, ‘Where did you get this girl?'” (Gary being Gary Marshall, the film’s director). Pacino was right, as Roberts’ amazing performance would define her career and the movie’s legacy.
The Croissant Becomes A Pancake
In the scene where Richard Gere’s character orders breakfast to the room, there’s a little detail you might not have noticed. It starts with Vivian eating a croissant while talking to Edward.
But then, in a flash, the croissant magically turns into a pancake.
How did that happen? According to director Garry Marshall, he liked Roberts’ performance in the later takes, where she was eating a pancake instead of the croissant, so they used that footage.
However, this caused a continuity problem. In the first shot with the pancake, Vivian takes a second bite, but in the next shot, the pancake only has one bite missing, and the bite pattern is clearly different.
It’s obviously not the same pancake!
Truth Behind The Iconic Dress
The careful work that went into the costume design might go unnoticed by the average moviegoer. But whether you’re into fashion or not, it’s impossible to miss the iconic red dress that Julia Roberts’ character wears in the movie.
The red dress represents Vivian’s transformation and empowerment. It’s in a scene where Roberts’ character goes to the opera with Edward Lewis.
Vogue described the dress as “eye-catching, incredibly sexy without losing an ounce of elegance.” The genius behind that amazing dress? None other than the award-winning costume designer Marilyn Vance.
She made six fabulous outfits for Julia Roberts’ character, Vivian Ward, and was also the mastermind behind Richard Gere’s stylish looks.
Take, for example, the charming brown-and-white polka dot dress Roberts wore to the horse race. That little gem was made from old silk found in a tiny antique fabric shop in Los Angeles – that’s some stylish recycling! And those chic shoes? Yep, they were by Chanel.
Richard Gere’s Tie
As for Gere’s wardrobe, it was a great example of color coordination, with brown, navy, and blue-gray suits, all designed by Vance.
Now, about that famous tie that Roberts snatches from a store employee? According to Vance, it was “nothing special” and definitely not a designer item.
She bought it in a Los Angeles shop for a cool $48.
The tie shows up several times in the movie. If you watch closely, you might notice that it mysteriously changes knots from time to time.
During the polo match, Edward wears a straight-collar shirt with the tie that Vivian gave him, tied in a Half-Windsor. But in a later scene, the sharp-eyed viewer can see a subtle change – Edward’s collar has become a spread style, and the tie is now in a Full-Windsor knot.
‘Obscene’ Shopping Spree
When Richard Gere shows Julia Roberts’ character the glamorous world of the rich, he takes her on a wild shopping spree down Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills.
That afternoon of shopping? It would have cost Gere’s character at least $30,000, according to designer Marilyn Vance.
Talk about a shopping spree on steroids! It’s like they were using Monopoly money – no wonder Vivian was in a daze.
The Ruby-And-Diamond Necklace Was Real
The jewelry Julia Roberts wore with her stunning red ball gown – a heart-shaped necklace made of rubies and diamonds – was worth a huge quarter million dollars. Yes, you heard that right.
According to movie trivia sites, this ruby-and-diamond masterpiece was the real deal. In fact, while filming, an armed security guard hired by the jewelry store that provided this extravagant necklace stood right behind the director.
Jewelry Box Scene Was A Practical Joke
The scene where Richard Gere gives Julia Roberts the pricey necklace is not only one of the most romantic and iconic moments in movie history, but it also has a funny backstory.
Originally, it was meant as a playful prank for the movie’s gag reel.
As you might remember, the jewelry box snaps shut on Julia Roberts’ fingers, making one of the most genuine, charming laughs ever caught on film.
The real story behind the scene came from director Garry Marshall, who explained why he and Gere decided to play the trick on the young actress.
According to Marshall, Roberts, who was just 23 at the time, would sometimes show up on set a bit sleepy after a late night out.
“I said, ‘Richard, you gotta wake her up a little, so when she reaches for the box, slam it. It was a soft box. I would never hurt her’,” Marshall said.
It wasn’t until the final stages of editing that they decided to keep the scene in the movie. “We put it in. And it became like the trademark of the movie,” Marshall said.
And just like that, an unscripted joke turned into cinematic magic.
Edward’s Disappearing Shoes
As we mentioned earlier, there are some mistakes in Pretty Woman that are hard to notice the first time you watch, but some eagle-eyed viewers have spotted them.
For example, when they leave the opera and go to the park, Vivian takes off Edward’s shoes. But as he starts to lie down, the shoes magically reappear.
Money In The Boot
Speaking of things on (or in) your feet, there’s a little mystery involving Vivian’s boots that you might have missed.
When Edward gives her $100 in the penthouse, she slips the cash right into her boot for safekeeping. But later, after the room service arrives with champagne and she takes off her boots, the money has mysteriously disappeared.
Did the cash vanish into thin air or is Vivian just really good at hiding things? Maybe those boots had a secret compartment or perhaps the $100 just didn’t want to stick around for the rest of the film…
Four Colored Condoms
When Vivian offers Edward a selection of colorful condoms, they seem to have a mind of their own.
Vivian starts with four neatly arranged options (not counting that fancy gold circle one). But in the next shot, like magic, the order has completely changed.
Then, just as mysteriously, they snap back to the original lineup in the third shot. It’s as if the condoms were having their own little dance routine behind the scenes.
Richard Gere Didn’t Like His Character
Richard Gere has definitely benefited from the success of Pretty Woman – both in terms of his career and his bank account. But he hasn’t always been completely positive about the movie, especially when it comes to his character, Edward. At a film festival in Venice, Gere described Edward as “criminally underwritten.” He added, “Basically, he’s just a suit and a good haircut.”
One scene in particular seemed to bother Gere, the one where Edward plays the piano while Vivian gets closer. Looking back on it, Gere said sarcastically, “I mean, no chemistry. This actor and this actress obviously had no chemistry between them. Haven’t seen that in a long time. That’s a sexy scene.”
Director Garry Marshall came up with the idea for the scene after asking Gere what he usually did late at night in a hotel. Gere said, “Well, I’m usually jet lagged. That’s when I’m in a hotel. So I’m up all night and usually there’s a ballroom somewhere or a bar, and I’ll find a piano and I’ll play the piano.” Marshall then said, “Well, let’s do something with that.”
So, the scene was mostly improvised. Gere said, “He said, ‘Play something Moody.’ I just started playing something Moody that was this character’s interior life.”
More Than Just Onscreen Lovers
If you ask me, the chemistry between Julia Roberts and Gere in Pretty Woman was undeniable. But the sparks didn’t just fly when the cameras were rolling – they also formed a close bond off-screen.
In 2017, Gere said he still talks to Roberts “all the time” and back in the day, they would talk “three or four times a day.”
You could say it was love at first sight, in a friendly kind of way.
“Yeah, we loved each other immediately. So it was a nice thing,” Gere admitted.
Even director Garry Marshall noticed the connection between them right away.
He remembered a moment during their first meeting when he stepped out to use the bathroom, leaving the actors alone to get acquainted.
“I came out and saw the two of them at the end of a hall, just looking at each other,” Marshall said. “And right there, I thought, look at that chemistry. They don’t know each other, and yet they’re doing great.”
Roberts Convinced Gere To Star In Pretty Woman
Although Al Pacino almost got the role, it seems Julia Roberts was set on having Richard Gere as her on-screen partner.
She really pleaded with Richard Gere in a sincere way.
“He’s a very serious actor and he had very specific thoughts about the movie and the part and what worked and didn’t work for him,” she told SiriusXM in 2017.
“I think I just nodded and smiled a lot and agreed with everything he said. I said, ‘You have to do this movie. If you don’t do this movie and it falls apart and I lose this job it’ll just be terrible.'”
And this is how it all went down according to Richard Gere.
“I still didn’t know if I was doing this movie. We’re getting to know each other, we’re flirty, flirt. Nice, nice… she’s across the desk, she takes a piece of paper, and she’s writing something on it and she turns it around and pushes it to me… Please say yes.”
Even in a fairytale romance like this, things don’t always go as planned. Maybe that’s what makes this movie so charming – and keeps us coming back to watch it again and again.
Did we miss your favorite “Pretty Woman” blooper? Share it with us and keep the fun going!