Two decades ago, Denzel Washington scored as a desperate man resorting to crime amid frustration over the U.S. health care system. Director Nick Cassavetes’ 2002 thriller John Q. centers on John Quincy Archibald (Washington), a father who takes a hospital emergency room hostage when he is unable to pay for his young son’s heart transplant.
The screenplay from TV writer James Kearns had been set up at Columbia years earlier with the hope that Dustin Hoffman would star. It never got made, and Kearns bought the script back. John Q. gained a champion in New Line exec Michael De Luca and got off life support once Washington signed on in 2000; co-stars Robert Duvall, James Woods and Anne Heche soon joined. Casting director Matthew Barry recalls Kimberly Elise beating out strong competition to play the title character’s wife, Denise. “I remember Viola Davis auditioned for that role, and my note on her was, ‘She’s not ready yet.’ There’s one I missed,” Barry tells THR with a laugh. As a heart surgeon, Woods took pointers from a pre-fame Mehmet Oz, the project’s consultant, whose hands can be seen performing the heart surgery.
John Q. was released on Feb. 15, 2002. Critics were unimpressed, but the audience response was much healthier, as the movie made $102 million worldwide ($179 million today). John Q. received renewed attention after UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was shot and killed Dec. 4. “When I heard about what happened in New York, the first thing that went through my head was, ‘Oh my God, this guy took John Q. to the next level,’ ” says producer Mark Burg. While proud of his film, he adds, “It’s sad that it’s still relevant.”
This story appeared in the Jan. 3 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.
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