Interviews: ‘Flashdance’ Screenwriters

Conversations with Thomas Hedley Jr. and Joe Eszterhas on the 40th anniversary of a movie which became a cultural phenomenon.

On April 15, 1983, Paramount Pictures released a movie called Flashdance.

IMDb plot summary: A Pittsburgh woman with two jobs as a welder and an exotic dancer wants to get into ballet school.

Here’s the original trailer:

The movie generated $92,921,203 in worldwide box office revenues. Adjusted for today, that is $281,596,026. In other words, a huge hit. The movie made its star Jennifer Beals a star.

It also made the collarless sweatshirt a fashion item.

Trivia: Jennifer Beals’ trend-setting collarless sweatshirt came about by accident. The sweatshirt, which Beals brought from home, had shrunk in the wash and she had to cut the collar off in order to get it over her head. When director Adrian Lyne and costume designer Michael Kaplan saw it at the wardrobe fitting, they both loved it and Kaplan improved the overall look of the sweatshirt for the actual shoot.

The screenplay was written by Thomas Hedley Jr., who also received Story By credit, and Joe Eszterhas. Here is an interview with Hedley about the origin of the movie and how he adapted it into a stage musical.

Here is an interview with Joe Eszterhas.

You may read the screenplay here.

For 100s more interviews with screenwriters and filmmakers, go here.