‘And I said, ‘F— you’: James Patterson turned down seven-figure ‘Alex Cross’ deal that would’ve whitewashed titular character
James Patterson revealed that, shortly after publishing his first Alex Cross book, he turned down a seven-figure Hollywood deal from execs who wanted to whitewash the titular character.
Patterson’s bestselling Alex Cross series spans 29 books and has been adapted to the screen multiple times. The series follows the eponymous brilliant Alex Cross, a widowed father of two who works as a detective for the Metropolitan Police Department. Patterson released the first Alex Cross book, Along Came a Spider, in 1993. Since then, his series has sold over 100 million copies, and Cross has arisen as one of the greatest modern literary detectives. By 1997, the first Alex Cross adaptation, Kiss the Girls, premiered with Morgan Freeman in the titular role. However, none of the three film adaptations fared well critically, especially Rob Cohen’s brutally panned Alex Cross with Tyler Perry.
For the first time in over a decade, the beloved detective finally returned to the screen with the Prime Video series Cross, starring Aldis Hodge. So far, reviews are mostly positive, with many critics praising the series for finally getting Cross right and embracing his Black identity. However, according to Patterson, there was once almost another Alex Cross adaptation that would’ve made Cross white.
James Patterson turned down Hollywood’s attempt to whitewash Alex Cross
During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Patterson revealed that he received very early movie deals after the release of Along Came a Spider. At the time, he was a budding author and didn’t have much money. He recounted, “When I wrote the first Alex Cross book, I didn’t have a lot of money and Hollywood came calling — knock, knock, knock, knock, knock. They offered seven figures, and I did not have a lot of money.” However, there was one condition to the alluring seven-figure movie deal. Patterson stated, “They said, ‘We just want one change; we want Alex to be a white guy.'” In response, Patterson said, “F**k you.”
He admitted it was “painful” to turn down such a major deal, but he did it. If he had accepted the offer, he’d have sold the rights shortly after the book’s release. Instead, he waited several years until “Paramount came” and “did a couple of movies with Morgan [Freeman].” It’s not surprising that Hollywood wanted to whitewash Cross. At the time, it wasn’t common for Black characters to be portrayed positively as crime-fighting heroes and brilliant detectives. However, this is one of the reasons that Patterson decided to make his titular character Black.
Patterson explained to THR that he was inspired to create Alex Cross due to his personal experiences with Black family friends. He revealed that a woman who worked at his grandparent’s restaurant moved into his family’s home. Patterson stated, “I spent a lot of time with her family, and they were great. I liked being with her family more than my family. They were smart, the music was great, the food was great, I liked to play basketball.” However, when he turned on the TV, he saw “a lot of movies with Black people with boomboxes,” which simply wasn’t his experience. So, he started writing about a man who was “the smartest person in the room” because that aligned more with his actual experiences.
There has always been some debate about whether a white man should make a book series with a titular Black character and how well Patterson truly handles Cross’ race. However, it is reassuring that he understood at the time that Cross’ race was a vital component of his identity and was chosen to honor and reflect the people he grew up with. His refusal to allow Hollywood to whitewash Cross ensured that the story would someday become a source of positive representation in the film industry.
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