http://lebeauleblog.com/2012/08/30/what-the-hell-happened-to-geena-davis/
Posted by lebeau
Geena Davis rose to prominence in the 80′s. She capped off the decade
with an Academy Award. She kicked off the 90′s with a starring role
in the pop culture juggernaut, Thelma and Louise. But by the end of
the 90′s, her film career vanished. What the hell happened?
It’s easy to look at Geena Davis and assume that she is just another
pretty face. On screen, she frequently appears as a bit of a ditz.
But in reality, there is a lot more to Geena Davis. For example,
Davis is a member of Mensa which requires an IQ in the top 2% She is
fluent in Swedish, trained in several musical instruments and is an
Olympic-level archer.
Let’s see Meg Ryan do that!
Davis auditioned for several movies including the role of Sarah Connor
in The Terminator before landing her first acting job in one of the
biggest comedies of the 80′s, Tootsie.
Tootsie starred Dustin Hoffman as an out-of-work actor who lands a
role on a soap opera by cross-dressing. Davis’ role was small and
mostly consisted of parading around in front of Hoffman in her
underwear. The joke came from Hoffman pretending to be “one of the
girls” while Davis flounced around in front of him.
Although her role was small, Tootsie was a monster hit in 1982. The
reviews were great, it was nominated for several Oscars and the box
office was very strong. It was a great way to start an acting career.
Following Tootsie, Davis spend the next few years paying her dues on
TV. She had guest spots on Knight Rider, Family Ties, and Remington
Steele from 1983-1985. Davis also had a recurring role on the short-
lived Dabney Coleman sitcom, Buffalo Bill.
Buffalo Bill ran for two shortened seasons. Despite critical acclaim
and 11 Emmy nominations, Buffalo Bill suffered from low ratings which
lead to its cancellation.
In 1985, Davis returned to the big screen with small roles in two
movies. The first was Fletch, also known as the last really funny
movie Chevy Chase ever made.
Fletch was an action/comedy/mystery based on a series of novels by
Gregory McDonald. Davis played Larry, who was Fletch’s “girl Friday”
at the paper he worked for. It wasn’t a big role, but Fletch was a
big hit and got good reviews.
The same can not be said for Davis’ other movie from 1985,
Transylvania 6-5000.
Transylvania 6-5000 was a horror spoof starring Jeff Goldblum and Ed
Begley, Jr. The picture above probably tells you everything you need
to know about Davis’ role. She was the sexy lady vampire.
Transylvania 6-5000 got negative reviews and was ignored at the box
office. It is really only significant in that it was Davis’ first
film with future husband, Jeff Goldblum.
In 1986, Davis appeared opposite Goldblum again in David Cronenberg’s
remake of The Fly.
The Fly merged Cronenberg’s unique style of body horror with a
mainstream horror film. Unlike the merging of the film’s central
character with a common house fly, the movie was surprisingly
successful.
The 1986 version of The Fly got positive reviews and performed well at
the box office. Davis’ first starring role was an unqualified hit
Regular readers of “What the Hell Happened” already know what I am
about to say. 1988 was a big year for Geena Davis. She appeared in
three films that year startinf with Tim Burton’s ghostly comedy,
Beetlejuice.
People remember Michael Keaton’s show-stealing performance as the
title character in Beetlejuice. But the lead characters were actually
played by Davis and Alec Baldwin. They played a young couple who died
and were doomed to haunt their home for eternity.
Davis and Baldwin ended up playing their roles straight while everyone
around them was allowed to be zany. As a result, they end up being
the least memorable characters in the movie despite getting the most
screen time. Even so, starring in Beetlejuice was a boost to both of
their careers.
That summer, Davis starred opposite Jeff Goldblum (now her husband) in
the quirky comedy, Earth Girls Are Easy.
Earth Girls is a sci-fi musical about three furry aliens who crash-
land in a valley girl’s swimming pool. Believe it or not, it is
sillier than it sounds. But if you turn off your mind and go along
for the ride, it’s pretty entertaining in a fizzy, empty way.
Davis played the valley girl whose doctor fiance is cheating on her.
Goldblum played the lead alien who discovers (thanks to Davis) that
earth girls are in fact pretty easy. His alien followers are played
by then-unkowns Damon Wayans and Jim Carrey who would go on to stardom
on In Living Color.
Reviews for Eath Girls Are Easy were mixed to positive. But the movie
failed at the box office. It has gathered a cult following on video
and is definitely worth checking out.
Davis capped off the year with an Oscar win for Best Supporting
Actress in Lawrence Kasdan’s drama, The Accidental Tourist.
The Accidental Tourist starred William Hurt as a travel writer whose
marriage to Kathleen Turner was collapsing after the murder of their
12-year-old son. When Turner moves out, Hurt returns to his childhood
home where he meets an eccentric kennel manager played by Davis.
Davis’ Oscar win for The Accidental Tourist announced her arrival on
the A-list despite never having starred in a hit movie.
In 1990, Davis returned to comedy opposite Bill Murray and Randy Quaid
in Quick Change.
Quick Change is a heist movie co-directed by Bill Murray. The caper
that opens the film is inspired. Murray poses as a lunatic dressed as
a sad clown. His conspirators are already in the bank posing as
hostages. Then, when the police demand that he release the hostages,
he slowly releases them and himself to make their get-away.
Unfortunately, once the story leaves the bank Quick Change looses a
lot of its momentum and turns into a bunch of stereotypes about New
Yorkers. Murray and Quaid are both funny and Davis makes a great
straight lady, but Quick Change never recaptures the energy of the
bank heist.
Quick Change got mixed reviews and was ignored at the box office.
In 1991, Davis co-starred with Susan Sarandon in Ridley Scott’s road
pic, Thelma and Louise.
Thelma and Louise told the story of two best friends who take off on a
road trip which goes awry when Thelma (Davis) is nearly raped in a bar
parking lot. Louise saves her friend, but loses her temper and kills
the would-be rapist. The two decide to make a run for Mexico.
Despite the dark subject matter, Thelma and Louise mixed drama with
action and humor.
It’s easy to forget what a massive cultural impact Thelma and Louise
had. It was actually a modest hit at the box office. But everyone
was talking about it. Some saw Thelma and Louise as feminist icons.
Many felt threatened by the image of two women armed with guns. The
movie inspired heated debate.
The reviews were strong and Thelma and Louise received a lot of
nominations at the Academy Awards and Golden Globes. Davis was
nominated for both, but Silence of the Lambs reigned the awards season
that year.
In 1992, Davis appeared in two movies. First, she starred opposite
Tom Hanks, Lori Petty and Madonna in Penny Marshall’s baseball
dramady A League of Their Own.
A League of Their Own is best known for Tom Hanks’ “No crying in
baseball” scene. At the time, Hanks was in something of a career
slump. His supporting turn in A League of Their Own is part of what
turned his career around.
But Davis was the star of the film. And it’s success cemented her
role as a viable leading lady. With League, Davis had finally opened
a hit movie on her own.
Later that year, Davis appeared in Stephen Frears’ media satire, Hero,
opposite Andy Garcia and her Tootsie co-star, Dustin Hoffman.
Davis played a reporter who was injured in a plane crash. She and the
rest of the survivors are rescued by a petty criminal played by
Hoffman. But through a series of errors, Davis’ reporter credits
Garcia’s war vet with the rescue. Comedy ensues.
Hero got mixed to positive reviews and made a small profit at the box
office. But given the star power involved, it was largely viewed as a
disappointment.
1994 was a rough year for Davis’ career. She released two films
beginning with Angie. Angie was a comedy-drama based on the novel
Angie, I Says about a pregnant woman who decides to raise her baby on
her own. It bombed at the box office.
Later that year, Davis appeared opposite Michael Keaton in the
political romantic comedy, Speechless.
Keaton and Davis played rival speech writers working on opposite sides
of a campaign. The film, directed by Ron Underwood, got negative
reviews and tanked at the box office giving Davis two bombs in one
year.
In 1995, Davis appeared in Cutthroat Island, one of the most notorious
bombs of all times.
Cutthroat Island was a 100-million dollar gamble on the pirate movie
genre which prior to Pirates of the Caribbean had a spotty track
record. The film, directed by Davis’ new husband, Renny Harlin, had
difficulty attracting a male lead.
Originally, Michael Douglas was set to star in Cutthroat Island. But
he left the picture claiming that Harlin was beefing up Davis’ role at
the expense of his. After Douglas’ departure, the role was offered to
just about every actor in Hollywood including Mel Gibson, Harrison
Ford, Keanu Reeves, Tom Cruise, Daniel Day-Lewis, Jeff Bridges, Ralph
Fiennes, Michael Keaton, Charlie Sheen, Liam Neeson, and Tim Robbins.
No one wanted to play second fiddle to Davis in a pirate movie. No
one, that is, save for Matthew Modine. Matthew Modine was the guy you
called when absolutely every other actor in Hollywood said, “no”. And
he was about to star in a big budget pirate movie.
Cutthroat Island got horrible reviews. It was such an epic disaster
that it contributed to Carlco Pictures filing for bankruptcy. It was
a career embarrassment for all involved – even Matthew Modine.
Many claim that Cutthroat Island ruined Davis’ career. While it
certainly damaged Davis’ credibility as a leading lady, it couldn’t
have ended it. Because the very next year, Davis starred in The Long
Kiss Goodnight.
Like Cutthroat Island, The Long Kiss Goodnight was also directed by
Davis’ husband, Renny Harlin. Davis played a seemingly normal
housewife who was actually an amnesic super spy. Essentially a female
Jason Bourne before that franchise even started.
The film, which co-starred Samuel L. Jackson, got decent reviews and
was a modest hit at the box office. There has even been talk of a
sequel.
Following The Long Kiss Goodnight, Davis and Harlin divorced. Her
next film wasn’t until Stuart Little three years later.
In Stuart Little, Davis starred opposite a pre-House Hugh Laurie, a
post-Jerry Maguire Jonathan Lipnicki and a CGI mouse voiced by Michael
J. Fox. The family film about a mouse who gets adopted got good
reviews and was a surprise hit at the box office.
In 2000, Davis retreated back to television with the ABC sitcom, The
Geena Davis Show. It was not a hit and was cancelled after one
season.
In 2002, Davis returned for Stuart Little 2. Despite solid reviews,
the sequel didn’t do as well as the first film. Davis would reprise
her role again for the animated direct-to-video sequel, Stuart Little
3: Call of the Wild in 2006.
Davis didn’t appear in another movie until 2009′s Accidents Happen.
She returned to TV again in 2005 for Commander in Chief for which she
won a Golden Globe. Despite good reviews and decent ratings,
Commander in Chief was cancelled after one season.
In 2012, Davis starred in the TV mini-series, Coma, produced by her
Thelma and Louise director, Ridley Scott and his late brother, Tony
Scott. But these days she seems to be focusing her attention on
raising her children and pursuing her activist causes.
So what the hell happened? Well, despite the Oscar and being in a lot
of successful movies, Davis was never really a proven box office draw
on her own. When she finally had to carry a movie completely on her
own, it was one of the biggest turkeys in box office history.
Cutthroat Island didn’t sink Davis’ career. But it certainly hurt.
In the wake of Cutthroat Island, Davis seems to have moved on to other
things. She continues to work when it suits her.