11 Eye-Opening Facts About ‘While You Were Sleeping’ for Its 30th Anniversary
Has Sandra Bullock ever been more charming, more vulnerable, more relatable than she was in the 1995 sleeper (pun intended) hit While You Were Sleeping? Far be it from me, as a longtime Sandy B fan, to imply that she is ever anything less than charming — but there is something about her turn as sweet, lonely fare token collector Lucy Moderatz that tugs at the old heart strings. As the kids might say, it just hits different.
Maybe it hits different because the story happens at Christmas, at a time when Lucy has been pining after handsome commuter Peter Callaghan (Peter Gallagher) — and, as luck would have it, manages to save his life when he is nearly hit by a train. Maybe it’s the charming ensemble cast playing the entire Callaghan family, who all believe, after meeting her at the hospital while Peter is in a coma, that Lucy is Peter’s fiancée. Or maybe it’s just the natural, sweet, funny chemistry between Lucy and Peter’s brother Jack (Bill Pullman), who is awake and sweet and a perfect match for our lonely heroine. Plus, he makes good furniture.
Whatever it is, the movie works as well today as it did 30 years ago. And here are 10 more reasons why we will never sleep on the chance to watch While You Were Sleeping.
1Julia Roberts turned down the role of Lucy
Everett Collection
As impossible as it might be to imagine, there was a point when Sandra Bullock wasn’t being considered to play Lucy. The role was first offered to Julia Roberts, who was having her own impressive hot streak in Hollywood at the time on the heels of Pretty Woman five years earlier. Roberts turned down the role before it was offered to Bullock, who ended up becoming the first cast member to join the movie.
2The first version of the film had the roles reversed
This original script told the story of a New York City fish salesman who sees a beautiful Scandinavian woman — but before he can introduce himself, she’s hit by a truck and ends up in a coma. Cowriter Daniel G. Sullivan told The Washington Post of this version, bluntly, “Nobody liked it.”
3Meg Ryan‘s production company suggested flipping the script
Everett Collection
Sullivan, who cowrote the film with Frederic Lebow, told Buzzfeed that the idea to flip the script came after the two pitched the original concept to Meg Ryan’s production company, hoping she might consider starring in the film. “Her development executive said to us, ‘Firstly, why would Meg want to do this movie if she’s in a coma for most of it? And secondly, you guys are creeps! It’s kind of predatory with this guy telling this comatose woman’s family that he’s engaged to her. Why don’t you flip it around — let the woman be the one fabricating the story. Then it’s no longer predatory, it’s funny.’”
4The film’s original working title was “Coma Guy”
Sullivan also told Buzzfeed that the working title for the film was Coma Guy, and he and writing partner Lebow were “known in L.A. as ‘the Coma Guys’” for a year or two. A friend eventually came up with the title While You Were Sleeping.
5The paper boy scene was a real-life mistake (that they kept in the film)
Fans of While You Were Sleeping might remember the scene of a paper boy riding his bike down the street, throwing newspapers at houses before messing up and falling off his bike. This scene was actually real, and the paper boy ended up breaking his wrist in the process. The director decided to keep the scene in because, let’s face it, it was kind of funny.
6In Poland, the film is known as JA CIE KOCHAM, A TY SPISZ
While most countries translated the film to something close to the original title, the Polish translation means, “I love you and you sleep.”
7The movie earned Sandra Bullock her first Golden Globe nomination
Newsmakers
Sandra Bullock was nominated for her very first Golden Globe for While You Were Sleeping, although she lost to Nicole Kidman for her role in To Die For. I think we can all agree Bullock might have been robbed, but don’t worry — she went on to win both the Golden Globe and Oscar for Best Actress for 2010’s The Blind Side.
8While You Were Sleeping earned its budget back 10 times over
The film was made with a modest budget of just $17 million, which it earned back in spades almost immediately. At the box office alone, While You Were Sleeping earned $180 million worldwide, an impressive feat for a romantic comedy — especially considering that Bullock had her career breakthrough with Speed only one year earlier.
9It wasn’t originally written as a Christmas movie
Everett Collection
The studio asked for the film to be set during the holidays, as holiday movies tend to be an easier sell — perhaps especially romantic comedies set during the holiday season. As to why it’s set at Christmas but was released in April … perhaps whoever scheduled it was also sleeping.
10John Travolta‘s sister Margaret was in the film
She played a small but crucial role as the nurse who admits Peter into the hospital.
11Sandra Bullock called making this movie a “magical” experience
© Buena Vista Pictures / courtesy Everett Collection
Perhaps one of the reasons this film still resonates to this day is that the cast loved working together and had fun with it. Bullock told the Washington Post back in 2020 that making this movie was “the most fun” she’d ever had: “When we got off work, we would all find a local salsa [dancing] place or place to eat. We would slide dance and have Scattergories parties. I go, ‘Where do I get the energy?’ I don’t think I ever slept. Everything about that experience was magical.”
It was magical for all of us.
February 2021
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