Aaron Sorkin reveals the movie he’s most ashamed of
Before becoming one of the most famous screenwriters in Hollywood, Aaron Sorkin wrote a few screenplays that he doesn’t necessarily remember fondly. He notably returns to Malice, a 1993 thriller with Nicole Kidman…
Aaron Sorkin is not one to rewrite history.
On the occasion of the promotion of The Social Reckoningthe screenwriter and director returned in The New York Times on one of his first films, Malicereleased in 1993. And he doesn’t have very glorious memories of it. He says:
“My second film, Malice, is a film that I am not at all proud of! Everything went wrong…“
The thriller directed by Harold Becker then brought together Alec Baldwin and Nicole Kidman. A week before the start of filming, the director suddenly felt that one essential thing was missing from the script: a sex scene between the two stars!
“We were in rehearsal, about a week into filming, and the director said, ‘We need a sex scene with Alec and Nicole. It’s ridiculous that there isn’t a sex scene with Alec and Nicole. So I want you to go back to your hotel room and write a sex scene!”
Sorkin, however, had another idea in mind. He imagined a scene based on flirty exchanges, before cutting straight to the next morning. But Harold Becker wanted something much more explicit.
“He said to me: ‘Go to your hotel room and write down what you would like to see Nicole do…’ A request that the young screenwriter ultimately rejected. For him, this scene simply did not correspond to what he wanted to write:
“It’s not sexy. It’s not erotic. It’s just vulgar. It’s just bad writing!“
Malice starred Nicole Kidman as Tracy Kennsinger and Alec Baldwin as Doctor Jed Hill. The cast also included Bill Pullman, Anne Bancroft, George C. Scott, Peter Gallagher and Tobin Bell.
Released in theaters in 1993, the film received a rather mixed critical reception and was not a huge commercial success, grossing just over $46 million worldwide.
Since then, Aaron Sorkin’s journey has obviously taken a completely different turn. The screenwriter of men of honor, The Social Network And Steve Jobs has become one of the most recognized names in Hollywood, notably winning the Academy Award for Best Screenplay for The Social Network.
