Pretty Woman, Which Was Originally Titled Three Thousand Wasn’t A Comedy But A Gritty Cautionary Tale Instead
Now, Pretty Woman has gone down as one of the best romantic comedies of all time, but screenwriter J.F. Lawton’s original version of the film, titled $3,000, though still somewhat comedic, was anything but charming or romantic. Speaking with Yahoo! Movies on the 30th anniversary of the film’s release, Lawton explained that although the original version had the same basic premise — a wealthy lawyer spends a weekend with a prostitute — the light-natured tone of the final product is not there.
The original version of what would become Pretty Woman also saw Vivian Ward as a coke addict and would have featured a plot that dealt more with addiction and a grittier side of life. The tone of the original was so dark that everyone from Michelle Pfeiffer to Meg Ryan reportedly turned down the role in the cautionary tale.