Photo Reproduction/ The Cannon Group/Golan Globe/Warner Bros. Pictures
Actor JeanClaude Van Damme became one of the most important names in action movies of the 80’s and 90’s. What many don’t know is that he was almost in the cast of “The robber‘ but was fired for an unusual reason.
Van Damme, used to doing intense fight choreography and showing his muscles on the big screen, didn’t do well when wearing a heavy suit and even passed out several times during filming.
The information was revealed by the actor Bill Duke during an interview with The Murder Master Music Show (via: Rolling Stone).
“The predator that appears in the film isn’t the original predator, did you know that? The original predator would be a much smaller creature and they would apply special effects to its body during postproduction.”
Afterward, he said Van Damme couldn’t cope with the rotational pressure and weight of the suit.
“Jean Claude Van Damme had to wear a heavy suit with cables running down the back. They would pull him by the wires and it looked like he was going to fly. He passed out twice from dehydration. The producer said, ‘If you pass out again, I’ll fire you!’ Two weeks later he collapsed again and was fired.”
This prevented the star from appearing in the feature. Luckily, he gets to star in other blockbuster films that have made an epoch in cinema.