Andrew McCarthy has expressed his gratitude to Molly Ringwald for helping him land the role of Blane McDonnagh in the iconic 1986 film Pretty in Pink.
In his new Hulu documentary Brats, released on Thursday, McCarthy, 61, reflected on his experience working with the late John Hughes on the classic teen rom-com and how Ringwald’s endorsement played a crucial part in his casting.
“That part was written for a square-jawed, big, hunky, you know, quarterback and Molly got me that part,” McCarthy told Entertainment Tonight.
“I auditioned and Molly said, ‘Oh, that’s who I would fall for. He’s dreamy. He’s poetic.’ And so John Hughes went, ‘Really? That wimp?’”
The Resident actor continued, “He listened to Molly, which is what John did. John honoured, not just on screen but in real life, John listened and respected young people. So, I was miscast in a way. I made what could [have] been a jerk have some sensitivity, so there was some empathy towards him.”
Pretty in Pink centres on Andie (Molly Ringwald), an outsider at her Chicago high school who has to decide between dating the popular and wealthy student Blane (McCarthy) or her eccentric classmate Duckie (Jon Cryer), on whom she has a crush.
McCarthy said his character’s personality was another reason “why at the end we had to reshoot the whole ending because, you know, the movie’s a fairytale so you have to give the girl what she wants.”
