Brewster's Millions Was A Very Different Movie Prior To Casting Richard Pryor
If you're of a certain age, you probably remember a time in which Richard Pryor movies aired on cable networks seemingly around the clock. Maybe it was "The Toy," or any of his numerous collaborations with Gene Wilder. But perhaps the most famous, and cable-friendly, was Pryor's 1985 film "Brewster's Millions." Directed by Walter Hill and produced on a budget of $20 million, the film was a solid success for Universal, finishing 16th at the box office in a stellar year that included classics like "Back to the Future," "Beverly Hills Cop," The Goonies," and "The Breakfast Club."
The film tells the story of Montgomery Brewster, a washed-up minor league baseball pitcher who learns he's the sole surviving descendent of his great-uncle, who left him $300 million ... with a giant caveat. In order to earn the full inheritance, he has to gamble: take a lump sum of $1 million and call it a day, or spend $30 million in a month to earn every last penny — without telling anyone why he's blowing through such a huge pile of cash so quickly.
It's hard to imagine the film without Pryor, who gives one of the better performances of his career (alongside the likes of John Candy, Rick Moranis, and Jerry Orbach in a stacked supporting cast). But there was a time when not just the lead actor, but in fact the main character, was going to be very, very different.
Many adaptations, and many variations
"Brewster's Millions" is based on a 1902 novel of the same name. Being a story that lends itself to adaptation, Richard Pryor's film version was actually the seventh to be produced. The first was made back in 1914 and directed by the legendary Cecille B. DeMille. The second, made in 1921, starred Fatty Arbuckle. We won't run down the full list, but as you can surmise, it's a plot Hollywood has gravitated to in a big way.
When it came time to pump out another adaptation in the 1980s, Pryor wasn't actually the initial choice for the lead role. Before settling on Pryor, Universal had its eyes on either the late, great John Ritter — who was fresh off of his blistering hot "Three's Company" success at the time — or Bill Murray, who ... well, we don't have to tell you why they'd want him. The story would have been vastly different, particularly had Murray taken the lead role. If that had been the case, his Brewster would have been "an unemployed astronaut selling knockoff jeans."
Pryor, meanwhile, was a risk. He'd famously set himself ablaze while high on cocaine, which naturally made studios nervous. As Walter Hill told The Hollywood Reporter in 2019:
"He was still recovering from what was called 'the accident.' He was sober, but he was in a frame of mind that he couldn't be funny if he didn't take drugs; and if he did take drugs, he would die."
While it would be interesting to have seen either Ritter or Murray in the role, things clearly worked out well both for Universal and Pryor. The actor helped make the studio tens of millions and — oh yeah — Monty Brewster got his full $300 million. Oh, sorry. Spoiler alert?