Whether you remember it or not, Geena Davis is a treasure, a diverse and talented actress with a filmography that boasted some of the finest movies of the 1980s and early 1990s. Now, Davis is reflecting on some of her career highs and lows, chiefly as they relate to some famous co-stars.
Early on, Dustin Hoffman gave Geena Davis some useful advice while filming Tootsie, urging her to never sleep with her co-stars. Sorry, Goldbum! While she never co-starred with Jack Nicholson, that didn’t stop him from hitting on her while she was a model, something she has spoken about before.
Geena Davis also spoke highly of Brad Pitt, who got his breakout in 1992’s Thelma & Louise. “He was very self-effacing and sweet and kind and whatever. It never felt like he was All That.” (But, of course, he is.) She also heaped praise on co-star Susan Sarandon, who she called “a revelation.”
Another revelation came in her working relationship with Bill Murray–but not the good kind. While Geena Davis and Murray did share credits on Tootsie, they didn’t have a negative run-in until 1990’s Quick Change, which is a criminally underrated comedy if we do say so ourselves. According to Davis, Murray insisted on using a massager despite her resistance. Later on on the shoot, when Davis was late due to a wardrobe holdup, Murray berated her in front of the cast and crew.
While Davis acknowledges the situation wasn’t her fault, she did feel partly responsible at the time. “The way he behaved at the first meeting…I should have walked out of that or profoundly defended myself, in which case I wouldn’t have got the part. I could have avoided that treatment if I’d known how to react or what to do during the audition…”
These and more stories are explored in Geena Davis’ new memoir, “Dying of Politeness”, due out in October.
Best Supporting Actress for The Accidental Tourist, in addition to the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, a huge honor from AMPAS.
Geena Davis’ next movie is slated to be Pussy Island.