As many know, actress Sharon Stone co-starred with Oscar winner Michael Douglas in the 1992 classic Basic Instinct. Although Stone has had nothing but kind words towards her co-star, she once admitted that she never really felt comfortable with him. And that discomfort would later affect her performance.
Michael Douglas originally wanted a bigger star to play his love interest in 'Basic Instinct'
Although many have praised Ant-Man star Douglas and Stone for their chemistry in Basic Instinct, Douglas originally wanted someone else to co-lead him. This was mainly because the actor admitted to envisioning a bigger star in the role.
“I thought, okay, I'll take care of this, but I want someone of the same stature to share the risks. I don't want to be alone in this," Douglas told Entertainment Weekly.
But most of the biggest names that director Paul Verhoeven approached for the role have dropped out of the project.
“I guess they just got scared. You know Paul,” Douglas continued. "'Yes, yes, there is nudity, nudity, yes, show your breasts.' He is like an X-ray machine.”
This eventually led to Stone winning the role.
Sharon Stone never felt comfortable with Michael Douglas
Sharon Stone beat out several other actors for the chance to star opposite Michael Douglas. After more high-profile actors turned down the role, other actors were tested on screen.
“Five months later, they had tested several other women and even offered the part to some of them, I really don't know who. But apparently they kept doing my test and saying, 'Wow, she seems to have the best drive. Then I tried Michael," Stone said in an interview with Playboy.
Stone admitted that she was already nervous about doing a screen test with Douglas. But even while she was shooting the movie with him, the awkwardness never went away.
“I had met him two or three times in social situations before trying out with him for this movie. I really felt that he and I could have a certain weird and dynamic energy together. I was never comfortable with him, and I don't think he was comfortable with me,” she said.
But the Catwoman actor claimed that the awkwardness didn't affect the movie at all.
“I think that kind of awkwardness lends itself to this kind of movie. Tension is good,' he said.
Stone also felt that there was some sort of ingrained force in her on-screen relationship.
“It was about watching him, watching his movements, provoking him. If one were to believe in karma, one would say that there is an unfulfilled karmic circle between the two of us. Our energy together was strong. It's still not comfortable for me, but I think it works really well for us working together," added Stone.
Sharon Stone found the s-x scenes in 'Basic Instinct' 'ridiculous'
Stone was not too fond of some scenes shot in the movie, including the s-x scenes. Even if it was only because she found those particular scenes unrealistic.
“I didn't have much involvement in the s-x scenes. Paul and Michael, very macho men, created them. When I read them and saw the storyboards, I thought they were ridiculous," Stone said.
When she was asked to explain, she had no qualms about giving details.
“Do you know women who have orgasms from these anatomically impossible positions? Please. In two minutes? Send them to my house so I can learn,” she said. “In the meantime, ridiculous they remain. Once I realized that's what the guys wanted, I thought, Oh, I get it! No matter how I touch her or where I touch her or what else I do to her, she's the hottest, hottest, s-xiest. I want to have some more of that! That is the 'f*** of the century', according to the mentality of the macho man."
