Madonna Almost Starred In One Of The Biggest '90s Box Office Flops

The early 1990s were a good time for the now-moribund genre of the erotic thriller. Mainstream Hollywood was pushing the limits of what audiences wanted to see in terms of sex and nudity, and multiple movies tapped into that sexual zeitgeist. Films like "Poison Ivy" (with Drew Barrymore) and "The Hand that Rocks the Cradle" (with Rebecca De Mornay) warned that one's babysitters might be there to take over the family with their sexual wiles, while "The Last Seduction," "Jade," "Sliver," and "Color of Night" tinged standard thrillers with a sexual element. Madonna starred in "Body of Evidence," a movie about a woman who accidentally sexed her partner to death. A lot of the genre's popularity was kicked by the assertive sexuality on display in Adrian Lyne's 1987 ultra-hit "Fatal Attraction." 

The biggest hits of the day were probably Lyne's "Indecent Proposal" and Paul Verhoeven's "Basic Instinct," with the former making $266 million, and the latter $353 million. Given the amount of money erotic thrillers were making, it seemed high time that Hollywood try to push the envelope even further, and try to make the NC-17 rating commercially viable.

On paper, 1995's "Showgirls" sounded like a good idea. Verhoeven would direct, and the screenwriter of "Basic Instinct," Joe Eszterhas, would provide the script. The film would be backed by a major Hollywood studio, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and be given a proper budget. There would also be a lot of unapologetic sex and nudity, assuring that this was a film for grown-ups. Hollywood wouldn't just be for PG-13 blockbusters anymore. 

As we all now know, however, "Showgirls" was a massive, massive bomb — one of the more notorious in Hollywood history.

During the making of "Showgirls," though, several stars of recent erotic hits were approached to play the lead antagonist, Cristal Connors. And since Madonna was fresh off of "Body of Evidence" for MGM, she seemed like a logical choice. It turns out she almost agreed. 

For those who weren't around to experience the saga firsthand, "Showgirls" was a big deal for MGM. The NC-17 rating had been first implemented in 1990, but no major NC-17-rated hits had yet been made. Indeed, most home video outlets and retail stores (Blockbuster and Walmart specifically) refused to stock any movies with the rating, feeling it was more or less the same as pornography.

"Showgirls" was supposed to change all that. The film was to cost a sizable $45 million to make, and was to be a standard "All About Eve"-style showbiz drama, but set in the high-octane and clothes-less world of Las Vegas showgirls. The main villain, Cristal, would serve as a dark mirror to Nomi, the protagonist, and both would be nude frequently. Audiences were, of course, supposed to be titillated, but also mature about it, admitting that expensive dramas could be loaded with sex, but could also become big hits. 

A 2018 article in The Hollywood Reporter talked about Madonna's cursory involvement in the project. It seems that the casting directors reached out to Sharon Stone and Madonna to play Cristal, as both had recent experience in the erotic thriller genre. Stone refused, but Madonna showed a little interest. The "Body of Evidence" star said she would participate, but that the script needed to be completely re-written. The studio, however, had notoriously already paid Joe Eszterhas $2 million for his screenplay, so there was no way a rewrite would be warranted. Because of this, Madonna passed. 

Gina Gershon was eventually cast as Cristal, and she did an exemplary job, bringing the kind of campy performance the film needed. She was cast opposite Elizabeth Berkley, who beat out Drew Barrymore, Jennifer Lopez, Denise Richards, Angelina Jolie, and Charlize Theron for the part. According to Verhoeven (in a 2015 interview), Berkley was the only one who could act, dance, and was comfortable with extensive nudity, and he certainly doesn't blame her for the movie's awful reception.

"Showgirls" received terrible reviews (it has a 23% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes), and only made back $37 million. The NC-17 rating, to this day, is still not considered commercially viable.