Kevin Costner’s Biggest Movie Regret: “I Wasn’t the Right Guy”
Even though Kevin Costner has only directed five films in the last 35 years — with the fifth still stuck in cinematic limbo — there are two apparent prerequisites when he steps behind the camera.
First, it has to be a Western, or at least something adjacent. Dances with Wolves, Open Range, and the currently troubled Horizon saga all fall squarely into that category. Even The Postman, while set in a dystopian future, follows the same thematic and stylistic rhythms of a classic Western. Second, and perhaps more curiously, Costner insists on putting up a significant amount of his own money.
From Dances with Wolves to Horizon, Costner has repeatedly invested millions of dollars from his personal fortune into his directorial projects. Unlike most auteurs who are defined by a distinct visual or narrative style, Costner’s trademarks are more financial and genre-bound: saddle up, and spend big.
But there was a moment when Costner nearly broke from his self-imposed mold. And in hindsight, it’s a moment cinema might’ve narrowly escaped.
Before Schindler’s List became the masterpiece it is — directed by Steven Spielberg and winner of eight Academy Awards — the project had a different trajectory. It was first attached to Martin Scorsese, before Spielberg stepped in after swapping Cape Fear with Scorsese in a behind-the-scenes trade. Spielberg directing Schindler’s List made perfect sense. The result was one of the most haunting, humane, and essential films of the 20th century — deeply personal and powerfully executed.
But in a parallel universe, one we can all be thankful we don’t live in, Schindler’s List was almost directed by Kevin Costner… who also wanted to star as Oskar Schindler.
“I went to Steven and he said, ‘No, I think I’m going to direct it,’” Costner once recalled. “So I said, ‘OK,’ because I would have directed it, and I said to my agent, ‘I’d love to direct this, and I’d love to be in this particular movie.’”
After Spielberg held firm on directing, Costner didn’t give up. He even offered to screen test for the lead role, essentially pitching himself as Schindler directly to Spielberg. “I said, ‘I’ll come screen test for you, Steven,’” Costner said. “I probably put him in an incredibly awkward spot, and he goes, ‘OK.’”
The audition, if you can call it that, happened in Spielberg’s kitchen — with Costner wearing a bald cap.
That’s when it hit him. “In the end, I wasn’t the right guy for him,” Costner admitted. He was right. Liam Neeson went on to deliver one of the finest performances of his career, earning an Oscar nomination for Best Actor and redefining his place in Hollywood.
Looking back, it’s hard to imagine Schindler’s List being anything other than what it is: a deeply personal work from Spielberg that only he could have made. As for Costner, his ambition might’ve gotten the better of him — and had things gone differently, the result could’ve been another ego-driven misstep, à la Waterworld or The Postman.
In the end, he recognized that he wasn’t the right guy. And thankfully, neither did Spielberg.
