An Unlikely Story
A woman from Kailua was in the audience at Hawai‘i Theatre one night in August, explaining to actor Cary Elwes just how influential The Princess Bride was when it came down to selecting the inscription for her wedding band. It was those three, little words... not those words but instead, “As You Wish.” A line Elwes knows very, very well. After all, it was he who made these words famous when he uttered them as lowly farm boy Westley in the now cult classic. With the William Goldman novel first having been published in 1973 and followed by its movie debut in ’87, it seems that The Princess Bride’s rise to becoming the timeless classic was a slow-going evolution. “No one had any idea it would have this kind of longevity,” shares the 59-year-old actor. “We all obviously liked the material and hoped audiences would too.”
Now that it’s become what it is, fans just can’t get enough. The film may be officially 35 years old, but Elwes looks back at his days on the set with clear recollection.
Several years ago, he wrote As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride, which became a New York Times bestseller. Published in 2014, the book is an insider’s look at the movie, filled with behind-the-scenes stories and interviews with fellow cast members like Robin Wright and Billy Crystal as well as producer Norman Lear and director Rob Reiner. The book was such a success that after As You Wish hit shelves, Elwes began touring the nation with a live experience of the book, so to speak, with “The Princess Bride: An Inconceivable Evening with Cary Elwes” where the audience could catch the film on the big screen then get the scoop on the movie from Elwes himself, post-show. Having just caught him here in Honolulu for that same event, the experience was exactly what was hoped for: hilarious, yet enchanting, just like the film.
And while Elwes continues to please Princess Bride superfans as he tours the nation, he’s still making movies. And television. And doing voiceovers. The truth is, he never stopped. While Westley may have been his breakthrough role, the actor has since been in a multitude of films and television shows, playing everything from heroic outlaw (who can speak with an English accent!) in Robin Hood: Men in Tights to sneaky storm chaser in Twister to corrupt mayor in Stranger Things... the list goes on.
As of late, Elwes is involved with a handful of projects, the biggest one being the Mission: Impossible franchise. “I have Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One which is being released next year on July 14th,” he shares. He’s also currently filming for Netflix’s Rebel Moon, a science- fiction movie directed by Zach Snyder. Originally intended to be a Star Wars spinoff, the script was reworked to become an entirely new sci-fi flick. Though one would be hard-pressed to find a common thread in the characters Elwes chooses to play — his roles couldn’t be more diverse. For Elwes, the more challenging, the better. “[I’m more inclined towards] whatever roles scare me. Ones that will force me out of my comfort zone.”
When he’s not pushing boundaries in front of the camera, Elwes resides in Malibu, California with his wife of 22 years, Lisa Marie, and their 15-year-old daughter, Dominique. They also love to vacation in Hawai‘i. “The first time I brought my daughter here, she fell in love with it, so now all of our vacations with her are here,” Elwes says. And he’s just as big a fan of the islands as she is. In fact, Hawai‘i tops his list of where he’d want to live if he ever left the West Coast: “It’s because of the people, the culture, the history — I’m a big history buff. History was my favorite subject in school — and the natural beauty. And of course, the climate is not too bad!”
Our tropical climes are in stark contrast to where Elwes is originally from. Born and raised in London, he is the son of portrait painter Dominick Elwes and renowned interior designer Tessa Kennedy. He was educated in London and attended the prestigious Harrow School before enrolling at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art for a brief period. When he was 19 years old, Elwes moved to the U.S., where he resumed his studies at Sarah Lawrence College. Just a few years later, Elwes made his acting debut in the 1984 film, Another Country, alongside Colin Firth and Rupert Everett. Two years after, Elwes started filming The Princess Bride a year before it premiered in movie theaters in the fall of 1987.
Despite its massive popularity today, the movie wasn’t a huge success at the box office, making about $30 million. To put things in perspective, Fatal Attraction came out at the same time and drew in $320 million. It wasn’t until Westley, Buttercup, Inigo and Fezzik made their way into the world of home video that the movie started gaining traction, and eventually, cult-classic status. So, what’s the secret sauce of the movie that allows it to withstand the test of time and touch the hearts of every generation? This movie ties our favorite archetypal stories and weaves them beautifully in one grand tale, filled with action, love, friendship, plenty of humor ... and a brilliant crew who was able to execute all the above. “The humor of the movie holds up really well and that is due in large part to the talents of the screenwriter Bill Goldman, and the director, Rob Reiner,” Elwes says. Fans will certainly want to add that the acting was pretty darn good too. While the storybook-turned-movie-turned-classic took time, it was certainly worth the wait.