<ul class="summary-list"><li>Winger said she was offered weight loss pills after being told she looked "puffy in the dailies."</li><li>She recalls saying: "I'm not taking that."</li><li>Winger said she felt strong enough "to say no to these f---ing a--holes."</li></ul><keyword id="1972263" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Debra-Winger">Debra Winger</keyword> says while starring in the now-classic 1982 romantic drama "<keyword id="463126" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="60" keywordseo="An-Officer-and-a-Gentleman">An Officer and a Gentleman</keyword>" she was presented with water retention pills by someone in the production after it was decided while watching the footage shot already that she looked "puffy in the dailies.""I was so young I didn't even know what it was, and I just handed it back and said, 'I'm not taking that,'" Winger revealed in a recent interview in <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2021/08/13/debra-winger-ways-metoo-has-gone-ridiculously-far/">The Telegraph</a>. "It just sounded ridiculous to me. But somebody else could have really succumbed."There are countless Hollywood stories of <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hollywoods-dangerous-weight-loss-secret/">stars being fed pills on (and off) set</a>, so what made Winger be one of the few to stand up for herself?"I certainly wasn't taught that by my mother," she said. "I didn't have great men around me, growing up. I just felt strong [enough] to say no to these f---ing a--holes."At the time Winger, was on the cusp of being one of the biggest actresses in the business.<div type="image" title="Debra Winger in a black dress" height="2741" width="3648" msid="85428835" hostid="261"></div>She had just wowed audiences as John Travolta's love interest in 1980's "Urban Cowboy." She would earn her first Oscar nomination for her work in "Officer and a Gentleman," playing a "townie" who falls for a Navy cadet played by <keyword id="2805" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Richard-Gere">Richard Gere</keyword>. And in 1984 she would earn another Oscar nomination for "Terms of Endearment" (she would earn another nomination a decade later for "Shadowlands").Winger has always been known for speaking her mind. She famously quit the hit 1992 movie "A League of Their Own" after Madonna was cast. In the same interview with The Telegraph <a href="https://www.insider.com/a-league-of-their-own-madonna-deborah-winger-2021-8">she commented on the decision</a> saying that Madonna's acting "has spoken for itself."Winger is currently starring in the Apple TV+ series "Mr. Corman" <a href="https://www.insider.com/joseph-gordon-levitt-interview-mr-corman-new-zealand-2021-8">opposite Joseph Gordon-Levitt</a>.

Debra Winger says she turned down weight loss pills on 'An Officer and a Gentleman' after being told she looked 'puffy'

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="1972263" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Debra-Winger">Debra Winger</keyword> revealed she left the 1992 film "<keyword id="5359242" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="60" keywordseo="A-League-of-Their-Own">A League of Their Own</keyword>" after <keyword id="15313" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Madonna">Madonna</keyword> was cast. </li><li>The "Terms of Endearment" star said director Penny Marshall was making an "Elvis film."</li><li>Winger also said that the "Like a Prayer" singer's acting career "has spoken for itself."</li></ul>Debra Winger revealed she left the 1992 sports comedy "A League of Their Own" after <a href="https://www.insider.com/penny-marshall-biggest-movies-2018-12">director Penny Marshall</a> cast Madonna as center fielder Mae Mordabito.In a new <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2021/08/13/debra-winger-ways-metoo-has-gone-ridiculously-far/">interview with the Telegraph</a>, Winger explained that she actually trained for several months with the Chicago Cubs - but stepped away from the project when the "Like a Prayer" singer signed on.Winger said that Marshall ended up making an "Elvis film" that didn't actually honor the real-life players of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.The actress said she ultimately "doesn't begrudge" any of the film's stars, but told the Telegraph that Madonna's acting career "has spoken for itself." "As entertaining as [the final film] was, you don't walk away going, 'Wow, those women did that.' You kind of go, 'Is that true?'" the "Terms of Endearment" star said. <div type="image" title="A League of Their Own" height="650" width="867" msid="85376928" hostid="261"></div>And according to Winger, film executives "agreed" with her decision to step away."It was the only time I ever collected a pay-or-play on my contract," the actress explained. "In other words, I collected my pay even though I did not play, and that's very hard to get in a court." Winger was supposed to play star pitcher Dottie Hinson before departing the project. Geena Davis later stepped in to fill the role (Winger told the Telegraph that Davis "did OK.")Based on the true story of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League - which was created in the 1940s as a response to most male MLB players fighting in WWII - "A League of Their Own" follows all-female baseball team, the Rockford Peaches, from their inception to their first playoff game. In addition to Davis and Madonna, Rosie O'Donnell, Lori Petty, and <a href="https://www.insider.com/tom-hanks-a-league-of-their-own-instagram-positive-coronavirus-2020-3">Tom Hanks</a> starred in the film. After a 1993 short-lived TV series, based on Marshall's film, Amazon Studios recently <a href="https://deadline.com/2020/08/a-league-of-their-own-reboot-series-order-amazon-1203006188/">greenlit a reboot of the original</a>, which will focus more on race and sexuality.

Deborah Winger says she quit 'A League of Their Own' after training with the Chicago Cubs for months because Madonna was cast

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The deep voice <keyword id="80495" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Evan-Rachel-Wood">Evan Rachel Wood</keyword> uses in her upcoming movie, "Kajillionaire," is her real voice.</li><li>The movie's director, <keyword id="3159836" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="miranda-july">Miranda July</keyword>, revealed this in an interview with HuffPost's Matthew Jacobs.</li><li>"Evan, when we were rehearsing early on, suddenly dropped her voice, and she was like, 'You know, this is my original voice, and I used to get vocal nodes, so I worked with a vocal coach to train my voice up,'" July said.</li></ul>If you have watched the trailer for the upcoming movie "Kajillionaire" (opening on Friday) you will not just be shocked by how Evan Rachel Wood is dressed but also by the sound of her voice.The "Westworld" star uses a super deep voice to play the daughter of parents (played by Richard Jenkins and Debra Winger) who are scam artists.Seeing that the movie is directed by Miranda July — who before making <keyword id="406" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="60" keywordseo="Movies">movies</keyword> like "Me and You and Everyone We Know" and "The Future" had a successful career in the art world — Wood's look and voice appear to be choices that July wanted. But the director revealed that the voice was all Wood."I wouldn't have ever had the balls to ask an actor to do a different voice for a whole movie," <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/miranda-july-kajillionaire-interview_n_5f5b7dd6c5b6b48507ff81b8">July told Matthew Jacobs of HuffPost</a>. "But Evan, when we were rehearsing early on, suddenly dropped her voice, and she was like, 'You know, this is my original voice, and I used to get vocal nodes, so I worked with a vocal coach to train my voice up. So now I speak with this voice that everyone knows me as.'"July was in complete shock."'Wait, are you kidding me? That other voice, that's a natural voice for you?'" July asked.<div type="image" title="evan rachel wood" height="1769" width="2359" msid="78242340" hostid="261"></div>July noted that Wood speaking in that deep voice was so natural for her that July completely forgot that it wasn't the voice Wood usually speaks in until people started seeing the movie and commented on Wood's voice.The director believes the use of the voice by Wood goes further than just giving the character something unique. July says it's also another way to examine the gay experience on screen. In the movie, Wood's character, Old Dolio, is trying to figure out her own sexuality."I kind of think voice is one of those very fluid gender identifiers that's ours to use as we like," July said. "I have friends who definitely, whether because of hormones or just because their identity was on a journey, their voice changed, so I do think it's an interesting, subtler queer indicator."Check out Wood's performance (and her voice) in the "Kajillionaire" trailer:<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xiMPCevu8Wk" frameborder="0"></iframe>

The director of 'Kajillionaire' says the deep voice Evan Rachel Wood uses in the movie is how she naturally speaks

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Insider chatted with Nolte about what still makes him want to act at 81 years old.</li><li>The legend talked about playing a homeless Vietnam War veteran in his latest movie, "Rittenhouse Square."</li></ul>At 81, Nick Nolte is still searching for a story to tell. He may not look the same as he did when he was dubbed People's Sexiest Man Alive in 1992, and his familiar gravelly voice might sound gruffer these days, but what remains is the want to be a performer. Or, maybe even the need to be one."Rittenhouse Square," an indie currently playing on the festival circuit, is the latest example of this innate desire. Marking the second feature from director Brandon Eric Kamin, Nolte plays Barry, a homeless veteran living in the famed Philadelphia park, Rittenhouse Square. He befriends KJ (Dharon Jones), an aspiring musician who is living on the streets after his pastor mother kicks him out of the house.As he has throughout his career, Nolte captures an intensity in the role that's mixed with charm and chaos. It's a style that made the three-time Oscar nominee a Hollywood star for decades, with movies like "North Dallas Forty," "48 Hrs," "Down and Out in Beverly Hills," "Cape Fear," "The Prince of Tides," "Blue Chips," "Affliction," and "Warrior."<div type="image" title="Nick Nolte and Dharon Jones sitting on a bench" height="844" width="1500" msid="95430307" hostid="261"></div>His bad-boy antics sometimes overshadowed his talents, like when his <a href="https://people.com/books/nick-nolte-2002-mug-shot-new-memoir/">disheveled 2002 mug shot</a> went viral before that phrase even existed or when he got into a <a href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-07-03-ca-11438-story.html">publicized feud with Julia Roberts</a> while making 1994's "I Love Trouble." But it was also those flaws that made his work so captivating.<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1991/10/27/magazine/offbalance-heroes.html">The New York Times</a> put it best in 1991 when it wrote of the star: "A Nolte hero is rarely a pretty sight... he stands humbly before us a complete and utter mess."However, Hollywood has changed in its tastes to the point that Nolte no longer recognizes it. He hasn't worked on a studio movie since 2019's "Angel Has Fallen." His last high-profile part was the same year when he voiced the Kuiil character in the first season of "The Mandalorian." He spends most of his time now working in the independent-film space and is completely content with that."My connection is to the story itself," Nolte said on a phone call with Insider earlier this week. "The stories in Hollywood are just so few that I don't know of them anymore."Insider chatted with Nolte about what he's still searching for in the roles he plays, why a fire that destroyed his home in 2008 has made him no longer think about his legacy, and whether he's ever reconciled with Roberts.<div type="image" title="Nick Nolte with a white beard" height="676" width="1200" msid="95430310" hostid="261"></div>You have played a Vietnam veteran, a homeless person, and an alcoholic several times over your career. For "Rittenhouse Square," you do all three in the same role. What is it about these certain things that make you want to play them again and again?Homelessness is something that intrigues me, the scope of the character you can apply to it. Like with "Down and Out in Beverly Hills," director Paul Mazursky asked me before we started shooting if I would go downtown and spend a few days outside and try to get into the homeless shelters. I went with a friend of Paul's who is also an actor and we wore ratty clothes and we went downtown and it didn't take long to get that feel.In one day, you feel you're really out there. But we didn't know the tricks of the street. For instance, when we went to get into a shelter they wouldn't accept us because we hadn't been on the streets long enough. They could see that. It was very impressive to be out there on the streets for those three or four days. There's a lot to playing a homeless person. Your father fought in World War II when you were a baby so you didn't really know him until he came back from the war. Is some of your father in these roles when you play a veteran or someone in the service like "The Thin Red Line?"Yeah. With "The Thin Red Line," having lived through World War II, I was born in '41 so I wasn't conscious enough to know it, but in a way, it informed the frantic of that character in "The Thin Red Line." It gave me a knowledge. <div type="image" title="Nick Nolte holding a communicator to his ear" height="435" width="1024" msid="95430312" hostid="261"></div>Playing the Barry character in "Rittenhouse Square," did memories of how your father was after the war come back to you?Yes, in a way. Though I only had sketches of stories that he told me. He was a major in artillery. I think he was stationed off Australia. They would set up artillery and fire over miles into the jungle.I remember I asked him if he ever saw anyone get shot and he told me there was one guy. His name was Red because he had red hair. He never wore a helmet. And my dad told me he got picked off, shot in the head, because of that. That was the only story he ever told me. Barry is very much a guardian angel to KJ in this movie. The elements of your character — shaky hands, drinking — was that stuff you brought to the character, or was it on the page?That's myself and Brandon adding to the homeless lifestyle. <div type="image" title="Nick Nolte smiling with hands on a bar table next to beer cans" height="1001" width="1500" msid="95430314" hostid="261"></div>Have you ever been able to pinpoint why so many of your characters drink? I believe it was Debra Winger who once said that you would even go to the director sometimes and say about the character you were playing, "I think this guy is a drinker."[Laughs.] Well, if you look at the average American family growing up in the 1950s in the Midwest like I did, they had this cocktail hour they did. And they smoked. There was no thought of cancer at that time.Smoking and drinking in films is just an art. That's how you fill those moments of insecurity when you're in dialogue with someone and the conversation stops. What do you do? You grab a cigarette or a drink. That was something taken from living during those times. At 81, what makes you want to still do the work? Are there things you're still searching for?I've always had something artistic outside of myself that I can turn to, so I'm still interested in the stories. I don't really know what they are, as there are fewer and fewer of them these days. And I don't find the 80s particularly fun because you're falling apart in a way. But I've always said that I'll keep on going until I just can't go anymore. Is there a particular director you would still like to work with?It's been a long while since a director championed my way of working.Speaking of that, throughout your career you have been known for going to extreme lengths for the characters you played. Is there one you played that you can recall was the most memorable to dive into?I remember the different stages I went through for <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074048/?ref_=nmbio_mbio">"Rich Man, Poor Man."</a> That was the biggest expanse in age. It went from 16 to 45. Physically, I thought of the weight I was as a sophomore in high school, which was 150 pounds. So I dropped down to that weight and got that boy body back. I ran around that Hollywood reservoir day and night.<div type="image" title="Nick Nolte in a boxing ring" height="1694" width="2258" msid="95430315" hostid="261"></div>Then, there was a period of time after my character Tommy is kicked out of the home. Ten years go by, he becomes a boxer, and he comes back to meet his mother. I knew there had to be a change.To have that punch-drunk feeling, I plugged up my ears so I couldn't hear very well. I really had to concentrate and listen to what the other character was saying and then when I talked it was like an echo chamber. It was real loud. So I would soften the voice to talk. And I also remember for "Beautiful Country," 20 years or so later, I played a blind Vietnam vet. Before filming I would go down to the eye hospital here in LA and the more I observed, I realized the people who could not see at all, there was something wrong with how their eyes looked. They were glossed over or physically didn't look right.So I went to the director and I said, "I'd like to do this role blind." I got this doctor who would put a lens in my eyes that blocked all the background and another lens that we put on top of it that blocked the iris.<div type="image" title="Nick Nolte sitting on a chair with his eyes closed" height="584" width="900" msid="95430318" hostid="261"></div>I worked out how many steps it took to get to the bed, and how many steps to the stove. I had all that down. But when we shot one scene, I got up and headed towards the back bedroom and somehow messed up the steps and ended up in the closet. I couldn't figure out where the hell I was. So, sometimes my method would backfire on me. There are countless "Hollywood bad boy" stories about you. One is the behind-the-scenes drama between you and Julia Roberts while making 1994's "I Love Trouble." She described working with you as "<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1993/12/12/movies/film-julia-roberts-after-the-layoff-and-with-lyle.html">completely disgusting.</a>" Over the years have you ever reached out to her and buried the hatchet?No, I haven't. Though it's buried. I mean it was absurd what we went through. It was partly my fault and a little bit of hers. Julia got married at the beginning of that film and it was one of those things where I just approached it all wrong.[A representative for Roberts didn't immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.]<div type="image" title="Nick Nolte standing next to Julia Roberts" height="3072" width="4779" msid="95430319" hostid="261"></div>Now let's go even farther back. You were considered to play the lead in 1978's "Superman," which would have been wild to see. How serious were you considered for it?Oh, they were interested in me but I turned them off by saying that I would only do it if I could play him as a schizophrenic. Was that your way of basically sabotaging your chances for the role?That's sabotage. It would have been very strange to play that. Do you think about legacy at all? Do you think about how you want to be remembered?No, I don't. Not since <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/nick-nolte-escapes-burning-home-120607/">I had the fire that burned every piece of remembrance that I had</a>. That's kind of forced me to not think about it. <div type="image" title="Nick Nolte in a suit sitting in a chair" height="3720" width="4961" msid="95430320" hostid="261"></div>Before the fire were you more reflective?I had my resources. I had a collection of books that I'd been collecting for 30 years. I had the wardrobe from every film I was in. Wow. What made you want to keep your wardrobe from every movie you'd done to that point?They were nice clothes, for one thing. And I just wanted to keep it because it was something that was tangible from the characters that I played. But now it's a different feeling?Yeah. Now it's kind of like starting over again. This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

You Searched For "Debra Winger" and got 4 results

Debra Winger says she turned down weight loss pills on 'An Officer and a Gentleman' after being told she looked 'puffy'

Jason Guerrasio

Deborah Winger says she quit 'A League of Their Own' after training with the Chicago Cubs for months because Madonna was cast

Libby Torres

The director of 'Kajillionaire' says the deep voice Evan Rachel Wood uses in the movie is how she naturally speaks

Jason Guerrasio

Nick Nolte opens up about turning his back on Hollywood, not caring about his legacy, and his decades-old feud with Julia Roberts

Jason Guerrasio