Remembering Princess Diana . . . and the Big Movie Role That Never Was
August 29, 2017 – 11:21 AM – 0 Comments
By Mara Reinstein Parade @@MaraReinstein
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Princess Diana: Royal. Wife. Mother. Humanitarian. Social activist. Style icon.
Kevin Costner co-star?!
There's something irresistible about an anniversary with a round number attached, no matter the tragic circumstances surrounding it. It's an opportunity for us to dive into nostalgia and muse to ourselves how fast time passes under our watch. Princess Diana was such a fascinating, beloved pop culture legend that we don't really need a special occasion to commemorate her life (or gaze at adorable throwback photos of her with sons Prince William and Prince Harry.) But the 20th anniversary of her shocking death has prompted a slew of public tributes, "where were you when you heard the news" remembrances and detailed biographies.
But this story isn't about what Diana achieved in her 36 years. This is about what could have been. And it's a doozy. That's because, according to Costner, the shy, soft-spoken former kindergarten assistant was mulling an offer to star in the sequel to . . . The Bodyguard. He revealed all during an interview with Anderson Cooper in 2012. "Diana and I had been talking about doing Bodyguard 2," he said. "She let me know that her life might be changing at some point, so she was having her own internal struggles."
The plot would have seen his bodyguard character, Frank Farmer, assigned to shield a princess from the attention of paparazzi and crazy stalkers. A torrid romance ensues, of course, just as Costner had fallen for Whitney Houston's Rachel in the original 1992 smash hit. "I told her I would have taken care of her the same way I took care of Whitney," he added. "She wanted me to write it for her I said: 'I'll tailor it for you, if you're interested.' She goes 'I am interested.'"
The actor claimed he received the script for the sequel on August 31, 1997 — the day before Diana died in a car crash blamed on paparazzi tailing the chauffeured vehicle that carried her and her boyfriend, Dodi Fayed. He read only a few pages. A few months later, a reporter got wind of The Bodyguard/Diana connection and got Costner to confirm it. The original story turned up in the now-defunct Premiere magazine, in which he noted that the film was to be set in Hong Kong, and Diana's princess character was to be called Julia. "The first 30 pages were totally her," he told Premiere. "It was dignified, sexy, smart, funny — and I couldn't finish it. I stopped it broke my heart." Indeed, despite Diana's assumed limited range as a thespian, would-be producer Jim Wilson explained, "We were smart enough to write a role for her that didn't take her beyond her qualifications as an actress."
Not surprisingly, Kensington Palace officials denied Costner's big screen-big fish tale back in 1997. "[The denial] came from the royal family," the actor recalled. "'Some people said, 'No that's not true. That's not true.' I called them up and said: 'Don't do that, because it's true' . . .And they said, 'OK.'"
So let's continue as if Costner did not craft an original story about the time he convinced the former Princess of Wales to go Hollywood. Would Diana have actually given the green light? Doubtful at best. Diana had many skills — including the shrewd ability to play to the camera. But she never seemed fully comfortable expressing herself in public. She only gave speeches in support of one of her favorite causes. (There's a reason why so many "insiders" have popped up in TV specials this summer asserting to know "the real Diana.") Houston was no acting star herself in the early '90s but at least she could command a crowd just by opening her mouth and performing. Those '80s music videos required her to step into another character as well, kind of. And if Diana were deterred by the thought of acting in a high-profile movie, surely the idea of doing promotion would have sent her running for the English hills. I can't imagine the introverted royal answering banal questions in a generic hotel room at a press junket, not even to a charming lad from Horse & Hound magazine.
Still, it's tempting to envision a scenario in which Diana ended up on the big screen. If anyone could have ably played a tormented royal, it was the tormented royal. She could have been the Grace Kelly in reverse. She could have worn a knock-out dress for the red-carpet premiere. She could have presented at the Oscars. Chalk it all up as one of the many wistful what-ifs in a life cut short. Then again, maybe it's for the best that we can remember Diana as someone who lived in the public eye just by being herself. And for that — can I say it? — we will always love her.