Notable and controversial actress Sharon Stone found international fame when she starred alongside Michael Douglas in the 1992 movie Basic Instinct. The movie was a thriller/erotic way ahead of its time and thus, gained the attention of the world.

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Well, Sharon Stone recalls that casting her as the lead character was something that she had to work very hard for. Michael Douglas, who portrayed the character of Hank Pym in the MCU, was unsure about casting Stone. The actress revealed that she had to seduce him in a screentest to get Douglas’ approval!
Sharon Stone as Catherine Tramell in Basic Instinct

Sharon Stone Had To Convince Michael Douglas To Cast Her

With director Paul Verhoeven helming the project, the director was already convinced that notable actress Sharon Stone would be the right choice for the lead role of Catherine Tramell. The male lead of the film was Michael Douglas who stated that it was a big risk for him to take such a controversial role at that time.

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Sharon Stone and Michael Douglas in Basic Instinct
Douglas stuck to the script and stated that there could be other actresses other than Sharon Stone who would be more apt for the role. In an interview, the Casino actress revealed that they saw around 12 to 13 other actresses for the role but none were as good as her. In the end, Douglas decided to give Stone a try but Paul Verhoeven stated that she had to prove her seductiveness during her screentest.
“Paul said, ‘Well, you’re gonna have to somehow prove to him that you’re comfortable with the nudity.’ So I came, and I had bought this Giorgio Armani suit, which for me at that time was every penny I had. And I bought, they had sheer blouses. And so I bought this very sheer, almost n*de color blouse, and wore nothing under it.
She further continued,

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“And so halfway through the test, I just took off my jacket in the middle of the scene. I saw Michael, look at me, and then look at Paul, like, ‘Get her.’ And I didn’t wear makeup, because I just thought n*de is n*de, right? The test went really well. And I got the job.”
It wasn’t all hunky dory for the actress, however, since she had stated in her memoir that she had to go through a highly erotic scene that was allegedly misled by Paul Verhoeven.

When Sharon Stone Slapped Paul Verhoeven For Misleading Her

Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct (1992).

After getting the role, there was quite a controversial moment that Stone had to shoot for the movie. Portraying the role of a seductive writer, she has to elude Michael Douglas’ Detective Nick Curran. As per the script, there was a scene where Sharon Stone spread her legs apart to seduce the detective. After the shooting of the scene ended, Stone revealed that she stormed into Paul Verhoeven’s room and slapped him right across his face!
“I went to the projection booth, slapped Paul [Verhoeven] across the face, left, went to my car, and called my lawyer.”
Basic Instinct went on to receive a rating of 7/10 on IMDB and an average of 56% on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie did end up creating quite a controversial franchise but essentially opened the doors for the erotic genre in Hollywood. Basic Instinct is available to stream on FuboTV.

Source: IndieWire