Kevin Bacon firmly rejected the fame that the iconic film "Footloose" bestowed upon him, expressing that it was "the last thing" he desired to become: a pop star.
The actor Kevin Bacon, who soared to stardom in 1984 with his role in "Footloose," recently opened up about how the immense success of the film disrupted his true aspirations as a performer.
In a recent interview on the Podcrushed podcast, Bacon disclosed that he was unaware he was auditioning for a "dance movie" when he took on the role. He admitted, "When I made the movie, I wasn't a dancer. I had no dance training whatsoever. To be completely honest, I didn't even fully grasp that it was a dance-focused film. I thought it was just a regular movie, and whenever they called for dancing, I would just go with the flow."
Bacon's reluctance to embrace the dance aspect of the film was evident. He recalled the mention of a choreographer during production and his response: "They mentioned something about a choreographer, and I thought, 'I don't really need a choreographer. I'll just get up and dance. No big deal. Just play the song, and I'll jump around.' So, I definitely had no formal dance training whatsoever."
Furthermore, in 2013, Kevin Bacon made it clear that he declined the opportunity to participate in the Footloose remake. Although initially excited about the prospect of joining the cast, he ultimately found the project to be lacking.
The role offered to him in the remake was that of McCormack's father, a character that seemed fitting for the actor. However, his decision to turn down the role was rooted in the character's limited development. Bacon revealed that the character they had written for him had only one scene in the entire film.
He remarked, "It was a terrible part. I was playing McCormack's (the original lead) father, which I wasn't too excited about, and the character was just poorly developed. I honestly think I did them a favor... it didn't make sense for me to be in the movie."
He also mentioned that they had created a scene specifically for him, but after he declined, they removed it from the film. Despite his decision, Bacon expressed that he still liked the remake.
In the 2011 version of "Footloose," the role of McCormack was portrayed by Kenny Wormald, while Julianne Hough played Ariel, the protagonist's dance partner. In the original film, Lori Singer had shared the spotlight with Bacon.
