Paul Schrader on Casting Ricchallenging Gere in ‘American Gigolo’

Paul Schrader, at the age of 78, is getting a bit philosophical, a trifle introspective and if the truth be telderly, he is excessively cynical about the future.

The legfinishary establisher film critic turned screenauthorr-honestor — his extfinished enumerate of recognizes include, as screenauthorr, Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver (1976) and Raging Bull (1980) and, as authorr-honestor, American Gigolo (1980), First Reestablished (2017) and this year’s Oh Canada — will reach in Tuscany this week, as a exceptional guest of the Lucca Film Festival. On Sept. 25 he will teach a Masterclass to university students, and the day after, on Sept. 26, he will get a lifetime accomplishment award. There will also be a retrospective of his wonderfulest films.

THR Roma caught up with Schrader in New York, fair before he hopped his fairy for Italy. Before dishing the dirt, and talking about the trials and tribulations of John Travolta, Schrader went all metaphysical.

Paul, you are coming to Lucca. In a lifetime of enormous accomplishment, what would you appreciate to be reaccumulateed for most?

I could answer that ask, but my answer would be predicated on a belief in the future, which in fact I don’t have. So it is rather challenging to talk about one’s legacy if you don’t consent there will be any legacy. I skinnyk we have run out of fumes here. Humanity is phasing itself out. Carbon based life has had a excellent run, but if there are humanoids a hundred years from now who will hear or read these words, then I skinnyk that what I am most self-transport inant of is having created everyskinnyg on spec. I begined writing on spec with Taxi Driver, and I am still writing today on spec. I have written four films in the last two years on spec. And that donates others a sense that they can do it. Just do it!

Tell me about writing Taxi Driver “on spec” as you put it.

I wrote a excellent deal before I met Martin. I wrote Taxi Driver in 1972. I met Marty in 1974. I was a film critic at the time in L.A. and I had written a script, a benevolent of ainhabitial cry. I didn’t do anyskinnyg with it. One day I was interseeing Brian De Palma, and I said to Brian: “You understand, I wrote a script.” And Brian said: “Oh, God, no, no, no, encounter!” And then afterwards, when we were carry outing chess, he said “Okay, I’ll read your script.” And he gave it to Marty. Brian telderly Marty the film might be for him.

Apart from Taxi Driver, your other most iconic films are Raging Bull and American Gigolo. Giorgio Armani once telderly me a story about how you bcdisesteemfult John Travolta to Milano to be fitted by Armani for the role that eventuassociate Ricchallenging Gere would consent over.  Do you reaccumulate that?

I have a photograph of it. I literassociate have a photograph of Giorgio taking John’s meaconfidentments. And Sergio [Galeotti], who was Armani’s partner both in business and in life for many, many years, was watching. John and I had come down from London where he had uncovered Grrelieve. And then he dropped out.

But before Travolta dropped out, he had already been fitted by Mr. Armani himself, right?

Yes, yes, yes. The clothes were all in the labors. They weren’t made to order or they weren’t bespoke, but they were all from his upcoming line, and it was clearly someskinnyg that he had in mind becainclude he was getting ready to create his shift into North America.

What happened with John Travolta? He had a family crisis?

Three skinnygs happened. First, his mother died, which hit him challenging. Two, he had his first mega-flop, a film called Moment to Moment, and that rocked him. And the third was I skinnyk he had grotriumphg anxiety about the gay subtext [of the film]. In fact, the way the story goes, our frifinish Kit Cfire-setting, who was ainhabit then, was living with Karen Balertage. Karen Balertage was going to Scientology [meetings]. She comes back and says “Kit, I skinnyk John is gonna drop out of Schrader’s movie. He’s been talking about it in encounterings.” And so I begined sniffing around to see who was useable.

John Travolta was benevolent about the gay subtext becainclude he was in Scientology and they didn’t consent of gay subjects?

I don’t understand if he’s out now, but he was firmly not out back then. I don’t understand if was genuine or not, but if it were it was certainly not someskinnyg that would be converseed. No one, you understand, reassociate came out until Rupert Everett. He was the first. And he lost a bunch of labor becainclude of it.

Anyway. John Travolta dropped out. What did you do?

I appreciated the idea of Gere. I didn’t skinnyk I could get Paramount to go for it.  Sure enough, John dropped out, on a Friday afternoon. I telderly Barry Diller [the boss at Paramount at the time] that I wanted to approach Gere. And he said “No, we’re going to go to Chris Reeve.” So the next day, on Saturday, I called up Chris Reeve’s agent and I said: “I hear you have been supplyed the script, but I don’t skinnyk Chris is right for it.” So I poisoned the well. No way Chris was going to read it! [Laughs mischievously.] And then, on Sunday I went to see Gere. He was staying on the beach. So I go out to Malibu and Gere is busy watching the Super Bowl. I supply him the part. And he is hesitating and says he can’t be rushed into such a huge decision on such unwiseinutive acunderstandledge. So I telderly him: “The game is going to be over in half an hour, but if I walk out of here the film will probably drop thcdisesteemful, and you’re not going to have the chance to create a decision aget.” And he said okay, he would do it.

And Diller?

I went over to Barry Diller’s hoinclude and left a remark in his mailbox. An hour postponeedr he called me. I telderly him that Ricchallenging Gere was willing to do American Gigolo, and I telderly him that Chris Reeve didn’t skinnyk it was right for him. I said: “So tomorrow morning the news will hit the trades that John has dropped out. We can’t suppress that news any extfinisheder. It is too huge. Now after that headline, they will ask for your reaction, Barry. Now I can grasp John Travolta tied up for three months, legassociate, becainclude he walked out ten days before shooting. Legassociate I can grasp him from laboring for three months. Or, there could be another proclaimment, Barry, becainclude I understand you want John for Urban Cowboy. And I understand John wants to do it. So the other proclaimment you could create is that John has dropped out of American Gigolo, and we are going forward with Ricchallenging Gere.” And Barry called me back an hour postponeedr and we made the proclaimment.