Director Andy Tennant recently reflected on the 20th anniversary of his romantic comedy “Hitch” in an interview, where he candidly discussed his creative clashes with star Will Smith. As Tennant explained, “I didn’t want cheap jokes, but he didn’t trust me.”
“We had our difficulties,” Tennant admitted about working with Smith. “The movie I wanted to make and the movie Will wanted to make—neither of those films would have been as good as the one we ended up creating together. It was a battle.
[Smith’s wife] Jada [Pinkett Smith] was a big help. She backed some of my instincts. During pre-production, I found myself pushing back against a lot of crazy ideas that were being thrown around.”
“Hitch” featured Smith as a professional dating coach who helps men impress women, only to find his usual techniques failing when he falls for a journalist played by Eva Mendes.
The film also starred Kevin James and Amber Valletta. A hit with critics, “Hitch” went on to gross $371.6 million worldwide, making it the tenth-highest-grossing film of 2005.
Tennant recalled that he and Smith clashed during the film’s development over “crazy story ideas.” He recounted, “Will brought in a draft that I really didn’t like.
Eventually, I told the studio that I was more afraid of making that version of the movie than I was of being fired. And at that point, I knew I was already on thin ice before filming even started. But to Will’s credit, we didn’t go with that draft. I don’t think I was ever anyone’s favorite.”
“There was a lot of fear surrounding such a big, expensive romantic comedy with Will at the center,” Tennant continued.
“It was a risky endeavor. Just three days before shooting, Will tried to pull out. He wanted to shut production down and spend more time working on it. It was absolute madness.”
Despite the behind-the-scenes struggles, “Hitch” became a box office smash, leading Tennant to submit a proposal for a sequel. However, to his surprise, “Hitch 2” never materialized—even with Smith’s history of leading franchises.
“But apparently, Will is developing a ‘Hitch’ sequel without me,” Tennant revealed. “I only found out about it three months ago.
I had a strong idea for a follow-up, and when I spoke with an executive at Sony, they told me Will’s production company was already working on a sequel. That’s just how Hollywood operates.”
“I have no hard feelings toward Will,” Tennant clarified. “He hired me to make the film. It wasn’t an easy job for anyone, but when we promoted it, he always said, ‘Wait until the junket—we’re going to travel the world with this.’
And we did. It was the most incredible trip I had ever taken. But once it was over, so was my time with Will. That was it. I haven’t heard from him since.”
