Actor Malcolm McDowell might have shot to fame by playing bowler-hatted delinquent Alex in 1971 cult classic A Clockwork Orange, but he could never forget that he had almost lost the role to rock star Sir Mick Jagger.
Washington, May 25 : Actor Malcolm McDowell might have shot to fame by playing bowler-hatted delinquent Alex in 1971 cult classic 'A Clockwork Orange', but he could never forget that he had almost lost the role to rock star Sir Mick Jagger.
The actor says while vying for the role, he had started to feel that he would not be selected for it, as Jagger's band 'The Rolling Stones' owned the rights to Anthony Burgess' book on which the film was based.
"I can reveal for the first time that The Rolling Stones used to own the rights to Anthony Burgess' book before director Stanley Kubrick got hold of it and cast me as Alex," Contactmusic quoted him as telling at at the Cannes Film Festival in France.
McDowell feels lucky that nobody tendered financial support to the 'Rolling Stones' for making the movie, and Alex's role eventually came to him.
"Thank God no one ever gave the Stones the money to make it because Mick Jagger had set his heart on playing Alex the rapist and murderer and the rest of the band were going to be his hit squad The Droogs. Can you believe it?" he said.
"Thankfully for the history of cinema and music, I got the role which turned out to make my career and Mick went on to be Sir Mick. I don't think it would have gone that way if he'd been Alex!" he added.
ANI