“Your fugitive’s name
is Doctor Richard Kimble…”
Loosely based on the 1960’s TV series of the same name, THE
FUGITIVE, which told the story of a doctor wrongly accused of killing his wife,
was led by a heavyweight cast in the form of Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones.
Although Ford would take the role of Doctor Kimble and immortalize it, he was
not the first choice for the part; Alec Baldwin, Nick Nolte, Kevin Costner, and
Michael Douglas were auditioned first. Tommy Lee Jones’ character of the U.S.
Marshall assigned to chase down Dr. Kimble was also auditioned for by other
actors; Gene Hackman and Jon Voight were considered.
The selection of Ford and Jones proved to be a masterstroke.
The two veteran actors complimented each other perfectly, even though they would
only share the screen together a handful of times. The casting paid off; THE
FUGITIVE was nominated for seven Oscars that year, including Best Picture, and Tommy
Lee Jones would take home Best Supporting Actor. Harrison Ford was nominated
for a Golden Globe for Best Actor. The film itself, which was a clever
combination of mystery-solving and pulse-pounding action, was a box office
smash, holding down the No. 1 spot for six weeks. The American Film Institute
lists the film amongst its Top 100 Most Thrilling American Films.
*
In 1993, this Bloggers’ Uncle mentioned that his
brother-in-law had said THE FUGITIVE wasn’t a good movie. Twenty minutes into
the film, just after a thrilling escape from an oncoming freight train, this
Blogger learned who to listen to and who not to when it came to movies. Aside
from that, the legacy of THE FUGITIVE certainly centers around Harrison Ford.
Although the popular actor had already taken steps in his career to separate himself
from whip-carrying archeologists and scoundrely space smugglers, it was THE FUGITIVE
which was a wake-up call and a reminder of his abilities. As a fugitive from
the law, Ford displayed a new depth and heart which made us respect him and
love him even more.
“I didn’t kill my
wife!”
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