Julianne Hough‘s role in Footloose wasn’t always a lock. Read on to find out what she went through to make her starring debut in the big remake.
Julianne Hough is garnering solid reviews for her dance moves and acting skills in the remake of Footloose, but nabbing the part of Ariel didn’t come that easy — she fought for it.
Footloose opens today (Oct. 14), with stars Julianne Hough and Kenny Wormald dancing the remake into fans’ hearts. And the fact that Hough had to earn the right to cut loose as Ariel makes her success all the more sweet.
Julianne Hough was tapped to play Ariel by original director Kenny Ortega, but when he abandoned ship, Hough had to prove herself all over again in the eyes of new director Craig Brewer.
Julianne Hough told Collider.com, “I basically had to fight for the role for the second time. I had to prove to Craig that I was Ariel, and I did, so here we are.”
The girlfriend of Ryan Seacrest, who rose to fame originally as a dance pro on Dancing with the Stars, added, “It was a long, long process.”
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She went on to say of Footloose, “I was attached when it was a musical. I was excited because it was a movie, and I was attached to it. I thought, ‘Oh, this will just get my foot in the door for the films I really want to do later on, down the line.’ Then, people started falling out, and Kenny Ortega left, and then Paramount decided to put it on hold for a minute….”
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With all the uncertainty plaguing the remake, Hough began playing the second-thoughts game.
She continued, “So I was like, ‘Yeah, maybe I shouldn’t do this. This is not feeling right. It’s not the right script. It’s not like the original. The script is kind of corny.'”
Once Craig Brewer got involved, however, things got back on track. Julian Hough gushed, “And then, Craig Brewer got attached and rewrote it, and I read the script and was blown away. I was like, ‘First, it’s like the original. People aren’t going to get mad. Second, this will actually show a range that I can do, on the acting side. It’s not really about my dancing.'”
Julianne Hough now knows it was the right film to attach herself to. “Honestly, I think this is the perfect movie that I could have done for breaking into the world. I’m not stepping out of my fans’ comfort zone too much, ’cause you still see me dance, but it does give me room to actually act. It’s not just a dance movie with no storyline. That was great. I’m really excited about that,” she said.
Are you heading over to the theater to cut loose with Footloose? Let’s see what Julianne Hough fought so hard for!
Photo courtesy of Paramount
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