Geena Davis is calling out another legendary male actor for bad behavior. After revealing how Bill Murray pressured her into an unwanted massage and then berated her in front of the whole cast and crew while filming 1990’s Quick Change, Davis shared another anecdote about Jack Nicholson. After filming a short but scantily clad scene as a young model in Tootsie, Davis received some friendly advice from Dustin Hoffman who warned her not to sleep with co-stars. (Ironically, Hoffman would later be accused of sexual harassment.)
“Say, ‘Well, you’re very attractive. I would love to, but it would ruin the sexual tension between us,'” Hoffman told Davis, who ended up needing that advice sooner rather than later. Via The New Yorker:
After “Tootsie,” my modelling agent took me and a couple of other actor-slash-models to Hollywood to meet casting directors. He happened to know Jack Nicholson, and every single night Jack Nicholson had dinner with us. Then one day there was a note under the door that said, “Please call Jack Nicholson at this number.” I was, like, I can’t believe it! So I said, “Hello, Mr. Nicholson. This is Geena the model. You called me?” He said, “Hey, Geena. When is it gonna happen?” I was, like, Oh, no—why didn’t I realize this is what it was going to be about? But it immediately came into my head what to say: “Uh, Jack, I would love to. You’re very attractive. But I have a feeling we’re going to work together at some point in the future, and I would hate to have ruined the sexual tension between us.”
According to Davis, the advice worked, and Nicholson realized she had clearly had some help. “He was, like, ‘Oh, man, where’d you get that?'” Davis said.
(Via The New Yorker)
