In his impressive decades-long career in Hollywood, Tom Cruise had featured in some of the truly iconic movies. However, sometimes he also missed out on films that could have given a slightly different turn to his Hollywood journey. One of these lost projects in his list also includes the 2001 film, A Beautiful Mind. Directed by Ron Howard and featuring Russell Crowe in the lead, A Beautiful Mind follows a mathematical genius facing challenges after he accepts an assignment from William Parcher.
Not only the 2001 film went on to be a commercial and critical hit, but it received eight nominations at the 74th Academy Awards and won 4 of them. While Russell Crowe received the nomination for Best Actor at the Oscars, there was a possibility it could have been the Vanilla Sky star.
Tom Cruise Chose Vanilla Sky Over A Beautiful Mind
Inspired by Sylvia Nasar’s 1998 biography of the mathematician John Nash, the 2001 film was initially expected to be a Robert Redford film. Producer Brian Grazer bought the rights to Sylvia Nasar’s book and started looking for directors to work on the film. The film was initially expected to be directed by Robert Redford and feature Tom Cruise as John Nash.
However, the Jack Reacher star was busy with his 2001 film Vanilla Sky. He bought the remake rights of the Spanish film Abre los Ojos after the film was shown at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival. He was intrigued to remake the film and approached Cameron Crowe with the same offer.
Cruise said that the Spanish film was a “universal story” and wanted to add “another chapter” to this story. Crowe accepted the offer, and its filming started in late 2000. His passion for the 2001 sci-fi thriller could be the reason The Mummy actor refused to feature in Ron Howard’s A Beautiful Mind.
Vanilla Sky follows an influential New York businessman, David Aames, whose life changes after he gets into an accident. And although the film was a financial success, it failed to impress critics.
Critics Review Bombed Vanilla Sky
Tom Cruise’s 2001 film Vanilla Sky made around $202 million worldwide with a $70 million budget, making it a commercial success. However, the Top Gun star was unable to charm critics with his performance or with the film’s story. It became one of the lowest-rated films of his career, with a 43% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Critics called the film a waste of time as they questioned why Cruise and Cameron Crowe devoted themselves to remaking a Spanish movie. Many also claim that the 2001 film thriller was the beginning of the end of Crowe’s career as an A-list director.
While A Beautiful Mind landed eight Oscar nominations, Vanilla Sky was only nominated under Best Original Song. Still, there are fans who love the movie and its concept and have praised the 60-year-old actor for his work in the film.
A Beautiful Mind is available on Amazon Instant Video.
Vanilla Sky is available on Paramount+.
Source: Movieweb
