Once upon a time in Hollywood, O.J. Simpson was cast to play the iconic role of the Terminator and Arnold was cast to play the supporting role of Kyle Reese in the film. While recasting major Hollywood films is nothing new. The reasons why O.J. ended up not getting the part was creepy and foreboding in hindsight. If you can remember a time before the 1990's you probably remember O.J. Simpson in his prime. He was on top of the world and breaking down racial barriers as the spokesperson for Hertz rental cars.
O.J. ended up not getting the part because at the time no-one could envision him as a ruthless killer. He was just too likable a guy.
Here is a quote from Terminator director James Cameron discussing OJ on The Terminator Special Edition DVD:
Gale and I just looked at each other and thought, "You’ve got to be fucking kidding me!" Mind you, this was before OJ was actually a killer. We might have reconsidered after he had killed his wife. (Laughs) This was when everybody loved him, and ironically that was part of the problem. He was this likable, goofy, kind of innocent guy. (Laughs) Plus, frankly I wasn’t interested in an African-American man chasing around a white girl with a knife. It just felt wrong.
Wow, it's funny how things change.
Image source: Pintrest.
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