Almost 40 years after starring in John Hughes’ iconic 1986 film Pretty in Pink, Andrew McCarthy he said he was “miscasting” all thanks to his co-star Molly Ringwald. Sitting down for ET’s retrospective, the 61-year-old actor recalled how he did it The Breakfast Club star, 56, helped people get the role of dreamboat Blane McDonnagh.
At Pretty in Pink, Andie (Molly Ringwald) is an outcast in her Chicago high school who has only two friends: her old boss (Annie Potts), who owns the record store where she works, and her quirky friend Duckie (Jon Cryer), who has a crush on her. . When one of the rich and popular kids at school, Blane (McCarthy), asks Andie out, it seems like a great idea.
“The part was written for a square-jawed, big, hunky, you know, quarterback and Molly got the part,” McCarthy recalled. “I auditioned and Molly said, ‘Oh, that’s who I’ll fall for. She’s a dream. She’s a poet.’ And John Hughes went, ‘Really a wimp?'”
McCarthy said that despite the legendary writer’s misgivings, he “listened to Molly” and offered her the role.
“He listens to Molly, which is what John does. John respects, not only on the screen but in real life, John listens and respects young people,” St. Elmo’s Fire show the stars. “So, I was wronged in a way. I made what could have been a fool have sensitivity, so there was empathy for him.”
“So, at the end we had to reshoot the whole ending because, you know, the movie is a fairy tale so you have to give the girl what she wants,” McCarthy added, referring to how Hughes changed the film’s original ending — that Andie and Duckie ended up together — after test audiences responded poorly.
Hughes wrote a new five-page ending where Andie and Blane get together, which was shot a few months after the film finished production.
“John takes young people and their emotional lives very seriously,” McCarthy said of the director, producer and screenwriter. “And that’s why people still watch the movie.”
McCarthy himself has picked up more jobs behind the camera in recent years in shows like Orange is the New Black and A sinner as well as new Hulu documentary features, Children.
The doc, directed and produced by McCarthy, examines 1980s stars branded the “Brat Pack.” The term is applied to teenage actors from the 80s who seem to be the leaders of Hollywood because of the big movies like Breakfast Club, Fire St. Elmo, Pretty in Pink and others.
Children includes plenty of behind-the-scenes footage and interviews promoting the iconic films of the 1980s that shaped a generation.
McCarthy also sat down for his first conversation with writer David Blum, who accidentally coined the term Brat Pack in 1985. New York Magazine cover story.
McCarthy joked with ET that he was excited to begin the filmmaking process Childrenhe is afraid of being despised by everyone he addresses.
“I was surprised that so many people wanted to talk to me (that) they know, because I think the biggest challenge is getting people to participate,” he said. “I know it’s still a little tricky in some people.”
When Molly Ringwald and Judd Nelson refused the invitation to appear in the documentary, McCarthy managed to get Emilio Estevez, Demi Moore, Ally Sheedy and Rob Lowe to reunite for the project. He also brought his “Brat Pack”-star sidekicks like him Beautiful In Pink co-star, Jon Cryer, and Back to the Future actress Lea Thompson.
McCarthy said that while some of those listening to the documentary may see the final scene as a tease for a potential sequel, he’s confident. Children movie enough for a group of actors who spent the majority of their basic years in the spotlight.
“We’re getting ready for part two,” he joked, adding that for the gang that came together to unpack the trauma, “I think that’s enough.”
Watch the trailer for Children in the following player:
BROTHER premieres June 13 on Hulu.