Jennifer Lopez Reveals the One Oscar-Nominated Role She Regrets Passing On
Jennifer Lopez says the one that got away still haunts her: she turned down Adrian Lyne’s Unfaithful and then watched another actress earn an Oscar nomination for the role.
If you ever passed on something and then watched someone else crush it, Jennifer Lopez feels your pain. She just admitted there is one role she turned down that still bugs her, and yeah, it led to an Oscar nomination — for someone else.
The one that got away
On The Howard Stern Show, Lopez said director Adrian Lyne offered her the lead in his thriller Unfaithful. She said no. The part went to Diane Lane, and the rest is awards-season history.
'Because the script wasn't good. And then he made it great. And Diane Lane got nominated for the Oscars.'
'It's funny, it haunts me. It haunts me a little bit. Because it's like the one that I turned down that I was like, Why did you turn down working with Adrian Lyne? I don't even know what the hell was going on in my mind at the time. Who knows what was going on with me at the time?'
Quick refresher: Unfaithful
Lyne's film is an erotic thriller about a married woman who starts an affair with a younger guy, and everything spirals. Richard Gere and Diane Lane headline. The movie did solid business — about $119.1 million worldwide — and even though critics weren't wild about the story and writing, they were all-in on the performances. Lane ended up with an Oscar nomination.
Where J.Lo is now
Lopez recently starred in Kiss of the Spider Woman, directed by Bill Condon, alongside Diego Luna (yes, from Andor), Tonatiuh, Tony Dovolani, Josefina Scaglione, and Bruno Bichir, among others. Early response has been mixed-to-positive.