Ultimately, Besson thought he'd have to settle for a cheaper leading man, but in a chance conversation with Willis, the actor said that if he liked the script, he'd figure out a way to make the money work. He also sought Mel Gibson, who turned the part down.ģ. The filmmaker had approached Willis to star as heroic cabbie Korben Dallas back in the early 1990s, before he had financing in place. But it didn't reach the screen until he was 38 years old by that time, he felt he was old enough to actually have something to say about life.Ģ. Besson (above) said he started writing the screenplay when he was 16, creating the vivid fantasy universes to combat the boredom he experienced living in rural France. Here are the elements that made the film.ġ. Still, as many times as you've marveled (or snickered, or just gawked) at "The Fifth Element" on cable, there's a lot you may not know about the movie - its long gestation (22 years!), the hilarious story of how Tucker landed his role, and the production's scandalous off-screen love triangle. Some loved it, some hated it, but it was a box office hit around the world (for many years, the biggest French cinema export ever), and it remains a cult favorite today. Luc Besson's flamboyant, over-the-top sci-fi epic, starring a blond Bruce Willis, an androgynous Chris Tucker, a tragically-coiffed Gary Oldman, and Milla Jovovich left viewers stunned. Twenty years after the release of " The Fifth Element" (on May 9, 1997), we still have one question: What in the world was that?
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