While also praising director Ridley Scott, Demi Moore says it has been inspiring to see female lead action movies.
1997’s G.I. Jane will forever be tied to one of the most infamous moments in Academy Awards history, when Will Smith slapped Chris Rock for taking a dig at Jada Pinkett Smith’s tight cut, using the Demi Moore movie part of the punchline. But it’s important to remember just what impact that movie had upon release. Outside of Sigourney Weaver, it was practically unheard of for a mainstream actress – especially one considered one of the most beautiful in Hollywood – to take the risk to shave her head for a role. But Moore saw the chance to play this character and ran with it with a tenacity that for too long has been overlooked.
Sitting down with Michelle Yeoh for Interview, Demi Moore remembered collaborating with her director and pushing herself in a way she never had before. “I loved working with Ridley on G.I. Jane. Probably one of my favorite experiences…And again, one that was very physical, and that pushed me so far out of my [comfort zone]…Yeah, and my baseline existence to this whole other world, another one that really posed a big question that at its core was like, why not? Why shouldn’t women be in combat?” (To tie Yeoh to Scott, she will be leading the series Blade Runner 2099, the latest in the series that Ridley Scott launched in 1982.)
Demi Moore added that female-forward action films have come a long way since G.I. Jane. “Being of the generation I’m from, I really wanted to find an action-oriented film, and I felt like the response I got was polite, but like I was crazy…And then I saw with the next generation of actresses, the world of action-oriented films opened up for them, which was uplifting and inspiring to see things changing.” Wait, we thought we had Jennifer Lawrence to thank for that…
G.I. Jane opened at #1 and stayed there for two weeks but ended up being an overall dud during its run. But Demi Moore is pretty damn good in it, earning plenty of praise upon release…despite a Razzie nomination that was probably only given because she looked different than she normally does.
Are you a fan of G.I. Jane? Do you think it gets enough credit in terms of female-driven action movies? Drop and give us your thoughts below!