Pretty Woman Original Script Was Nothing Like the Sweet Rom-Com We Saw 

Summary:

• Screenwriter Jonathan F. Lawton originally wrote the script about a ruthless financier who destroys companies and has to face the consequences.
• Then, in the script titled 3000, a prostitute was added with whom the financier spent time for $3,000, and in the end he cold0bloodedly broke up with her.
• When Disney acquired the rights to the script, it was rewritten by Garry Marshall, who turned the drama into a romcom.
• Vivian's iconic red dress could also have been different – costume designer Marilyn Vance insisted that the dress be red, although the producers wanted it to be black.

Pretty Woman wasn't meant to be a romantic comedy, and it also wasn't meant to have a happy ending. Originally a gritty realist drama, the Pretty Woman we know and love was created against the wishes of its screenwriter.

Original Script Was a Completely Different Story

In the late 1980s, Jonathan F. Lawton was a young screenwriter trying to make a career in Hollywood. At some point, inspired by the dramas Wall Street and The Last Detail, he came up with a story about a financier who destroys companies and ends up facing the person who suffered from his actions.

Then a prostitute appeared in the script who agreed to spend a week with the financier as an escort for a fee of three thousand dollars, and the script was titled 3000.

And of course, in the finale, the characters parted – the financier had to rudely kick the humiliated girl out of the room, throwing her the agreed fee.

Although Vivian seemed depressed, she returned to her friend and they both went to Disneyland to have a good time with the money they had earned.

The script, despite its dark tone, was bought by the Disney studio, which in the late 80s was already producing movies in addition to animations. But the script went to director Garry Marshall, who unexpectedly saw in it not a drama, but a fairy tale.

Pretty Woman Got a Happy Ending Thanks to Gere and Roberts’ Chemistry

The producers debated whether to keep the ending sad or add a happy ending.

Lawton believes it was the duo of Richard Gere and Julia Roberts, who were perfect for each other on screen, that made them choose the second option.

The Iconic Dress Was Almost Different, Too

As the story progresses, the vulgar Vivian must become more reserved and sophisticated. And the choice of new outfits was supposed to demonstrate this change.

The most memorable outfit was the dress for the opera, which Edward paired with a luxurious necklace.

As a result, costume designer Marilyn Vance was nominated for a BAFTA award: she came up with the red dress, which reflects the changes in Vivian's life.

It is bright and sexy, but at the same time the complete opposite of the clothes Vivian appears in at the beginning of the movie. Marilyn insisted that the outfit be red, even though the studio bosses wanted it to be a more restrained black.