When the Star Demanded Changes: An MGM Vignette

This is the fourth and final blog that I wrote in the past that I represent to you now.

Most classic film fans know that Katharine Hepburn almost starred in the 1972 film Travels with My Aunt, an MGM release which was (in this writer's humble opinion) their best film of that year. But, in this particular case, the rejection of the role was more complicated than usual. There were rumors that she turned down the film because of flashback sequences or because the actress Joy Bang was not cast in a minor role of a hippie, but none of them were true. What follows is the real story of how Katharine Hepburn turned down Travels with My Aunt. At first, when she heard that MGM wanted her to appear in the film, she recived the news with trepidation because the role was much like the one she had just done in the 1969 film The Madwoman of Chaillot, a film received with icy indifference by both critics and audiences. Also, she didn't really think much of the script which had been written by Hugh Wheeler and had gone through revisions by Jay Presson Allen. Hepburn reconsidered after Graham Greene, the original book's author, and her dear friend George Cukor, the director of the film, asked her to reconsider. She then read the book and felt that the film was lacking the flavor of the book and therefore was not as good as it. Jay Presson Allen suggested to miss Hepburn that if she wanted to she could make her own revisions to the script. So that is exactly what Katharine Hepburn did. She ended up rewriting just about all of the film except for one speech that remained from Allen's version. And yet she still had mixed feelings on the project. MGM officals who were, by this time, infuriated by the delays offered her an ultimatum: either she would agree to Allen's script and be ready to film the movie or otherwise she would lose the film. Miss Hepburn opted not to appear in the film and so Maggie Smith was cast instead.What is ironic is that Cukor prefered Hepburn's script and used it instead of the Allen script. However, because Katharine Hepburn was not a member of the Screen Writer's Guild, she could not receive credit for it. So the eventual credit went to both Wheeler and Allen. The film was released on December 17, 1972 and was greeted with tepid reviews and business. Nevertheless, the film was up for four Oscars including a nomination for Maggie Smith and a win for Costume Design. Yet, despite that Maggie Smith did an exceptional job in the role, it is hard for one to watch the film and wonder what Katharine Hepburn might have done with it.