Alongside Han Solo, Indiana Jones is probably actor Harrison Ford’s most legendary role. Ford worked with Steven Spielberg on four films about the iconic adventurer and archaeologist. But that doesn’t mean that the actor would have accepted every role for the director. One of the most important parts in a great classic of the blockbuster genius, he quickly and clearly rejected it.
Harrison Ford turned down Jurassic Park lead role
In 2011, Entertainment Weekly did a major interview with Spielberg about his career. It was also about the dinosaur hit Jurassic Park, for which the director had wanted Sam Neill Ford in the lead role. The Indiana Jones actor clearly didn’t want to play the role:
Sam does a phenomenal job, but my first choice was Harrison. I went to the art department and She had a photorealistic painting of the T. Rex madewho hunts Harrison with two children, and added Harrison’s face to the character of the archaeologist and sent the script, book and picture to Harrison. The next day I got a call and he said, ‘This isn’t for me, my friend.’ That was the end of the conversation.
Check out the Jurassic Park trailer here again:
Jurassic Park – Trailer (German) HD
It is not known whether the photorealistic painting was not convincing for Ford or whether he generally did not like the role. Who knows what the Jurassic Park franchise would have looked like otherwise with Harrison Ford in the lead role…
Either way, no one will complain about this development. The dinosaur blockbuster became one of the most celebrated Spielberg films ever and to this day consists of a live-action film series with six parts that has grossed over $6 billion at the box office worldwide.
Where to stream Jurassic Park?
If you’re in the mood for Spielberg’s outstanding dinosaur blockbuster again, you can try Jurassic Park on Amazon Prime and Sky’s WOW Watch with streaming subscription.
Next year, Jurassic World 4: Rebirth, the latest part of the series with Marvel star Scarlett Johansson in one of the leading roles, will start in the cinema on July 2, 2025.
This article was also published in a similar form on our international sister site Applesfera.