Kevin Costner almost missed out on one of his most important roles to date.
The Oscar winner recently revealed that Robin Williams was also considered for the lead role as Ray Kinsella in the classic sports fantasy film Field of Dreams.
“A good story needs a good script to jump off the page and become a movie,” Costner said. GQ Magazine As we sat down to talk, I said, “That little movie wasn’t so much sprinkled with gold dust as I thought it would be a big hit, but rather it was sprinkled with gold dust in that it touched me personally.”
Robin Williams hired military veterans as extras on set, says daughter of ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ star
Kevin Costner (right) competed against Robin Williams for the leading role in the 1989 film “Field of Dreams.” (Getty Images)
The Oscar-nominated film, released in 1989, tells the story of an Iowa farmer named Ray who hears voices and has visions of building a baseball field in his cornfield. Throughout the film, the field is visited by the ghosts of baseball legends.
“There was a funny moment, because of Robin Williams, where I said to the director, ‘Robin Williams is a big star, as big a star as you could ever want to be,'” Costner recalled of the early days of filming.
Kevin Costner’s ex-girlfriend admits romance with family friend, leaving actor in tears at Horizon Cannes premiere
At the time, Williams had just starred in Live and Let Die and was already emerging as a serious actor thanks to starring roles in TV’s Mork & Mindy and the film Good Morning, Vietnam.
Costner’s baseball movie “Field of Dreams” was released in 1989 and became an instant classic. (Universal)
Costner added, “So when he chose me for the role over Robin Williams, because it seemed like a natural talent to Robin Williams, he said, ‘I’m sure Robin Williams hears voices in the cornfields. I’m sure you don’t. Kevin, they’re going to believe you in the end, because they’re going to see how it works.'”
The phrase “If you build it, he will come” is repeated throughout the film, alluding to the baseball field Costner’s character builds on his farm.
Click here to sign up for our Entertainment Newsletter
“They might have said ‘Voices,’ and I was like pulling corn, and I forget what happened, but I was like, oh, I had to act like I heard voices, right? So I did,” Costner said.
Williams starred in the 1989 film Live and Let Die. (Touchstone Pictures/Getty Images)
Williams co-starred with Pam Dawber on “Mork & Mindy.” (ABC Photo Archive)
Williams, a prolific comedian and voice actor, committed suicide on August 11, 2014. He was 63 years old.
Costner decided to accept the role in Field of Dreams because he was “personally moved” by the script.
Did you enjoy reading this? For more entertainment news click here
“I read ‘Field of Dreams’ alone on my couch, and the first page was beautiful – someone is talking to him in the cornfield,” the “Yellowstone” star said.
Costner returned to the set of Field of Dreams before an MLB game in Dyersville, Iowa in 2021. (Stacey Revere)
“Okay, let’s continue. We’re not going to get to shootouts, car chases or big fights. The journey will take you to a place where you meet your father. It’s a biblical expression of what we wanted to say, what can’t be said between father and son, mother and daughter.”
He adds: “And then this little film I saw in the cornfield just captured me and all of a sudden it wasn’t a film anymore, it became truth and I thought, ‘I wish I could have said that in my life.'”
Click here to get the FOX News app
