page_title: Born on the Fourth of July (film)
section_title: Development
hierarchical_section_title: Born on the Fourth of July (film) / Production / Development
caption_attribution_description: Oliver Stone
context_page_description: Born on the Fourth of July is a 1989 American biographical war drama film based on the eponymous 1976 autobiography by Ron Kovic. Directed by Oliver Stone, and written by Stone and Kovic, it stars Tom Cruise, Kyra Sedgwick, Raymond J. Barry, Jerry Levine, Frank Whaley and Willem Dafoe. The film depicts the life of Kovic over a 20-year period, detailing his childhood, his military service and paralysis during the Vietnam War, and his transition to anti-war activism. It is the second installment in Stone's trilogy of films about the Vietnam War, following Platoon and preceding Heaven & Earth.
  Producer Martin Bregman acquired the film rights to the book in 1976 and hired Stone, also a Vietnam veteran, to co-write the screenplay with Kovic, who would be played by Al Pacino. When Stone optioned the book in 1978, the film adaptation became mired in development hell after Pacino and Bregman left, which resulted in him and Kovic putting the film on hold. After the release of Platoon, the project was revived at Universal Pictures, with Stone attached to direct.
context_section_description: Al Pacino expressed interest in portraying Ron Kovic after watching the Vietnam veteran's televised appearance at the 1976 Democratic National Convention and reading his autobiography. He also turned down starring roles in the Vietnam War-themed films Coming Home (1978) and Apocalypse Now (1979), the former for which Kovic would act as a consultant. Kovic met with Pacino in New York, where they discussed adapting the book to film. In September 1976, Pacino's manager, producer Martin Bregman, contacted Kovic's agent and entered into negotiations for the film rights. The following October, Bregman's production company Artists Entertainment Complex acquired the rights for $150,000. Filming was scheduled to begin in June 1977 with Paramount Pictures acting as distributor, but the project fell apart. Bregman and Pacino were unhappy with the script, and the studio dropped the film.
  In 1977, Bregman hired Oliver Stone, also a Vietnam veteran, to help write the screenplay. At the time, Stone had been developing Platoon (1986), and an unproduced sequel script titled Second Life, that was inspired by his own life after the war. He and Kovic bonded over their experiences during the war, and they began work on a new script in 1978 after Stone optioned the book. Stone also discussed the adaptation with William Friedkin, who turned down an opportunity to direct in favor of helming The Brink's Job (1978). After Bregman secured financing from German investors, the film briefly continued development at United Artists before moving to Orion Pictures. Daniel Petrie was hired to direct, but several weeks before rehearsals, the investors withdrew from funding the film. After the project moved to Universal Pictures, Bregman and Pacino left the film. Bregman deemed the project impossible, and felt it would be overshadowed by the success of Coming Home. Stone and Kovic grew frustrated with the troubled pre-production and dropped the project, though Stone expressed his hope to return and make the film at a later time. Stone promised Kovic that if his career took off, he would return to Kovic to revive the project. Kovic stated that after the release of Platoon, Stone called Kovic and told him he was ready to return working on the film.
  In April 1987, John Daly, chairman and CEO of the English-based Hemdale Film Corporation, announced that it was producing the film, which would act as a sequel to Platoon. The studio entered into negotiations to finance the film in May 1988 with a $20 million budget, but it later withdrew from funding the film. Stone was announced as director in June 1988, and his Ixtlan Productions banner was enlisted as a production company. Tom Pollock, president of Universal Pictures, read the script as Stone was developing Wall Street (1987), and the studio allocated a $14 million budget on the condition that a major star appears in the lead role. Stone and Kovic then revised the script, adding the latter's appearance at the 1976 Democratic National Convention.
caption: Director Oliver Stone in February 1987
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