Potential Financiers Wanted ‘On The Basis Of Sex’ Writer To Make RBG’s Husband Less Likable

According to critics, “On the Basis of Sex” doesn’t necessarily reinvent the biopic wheel with its telling of the life and times of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The acting is great. The writing is quality. But the story and structure don’t really do anything different than what you’ve seen with other biopics. However, there’s one big thing that the film does that many films historically haven’t done – portray a marriage that didn’t go through any significant ups and downs. And according to the writer of the film, if executives had their way, that would have changed.

READ MORE: ‘On The Basis Of Sex’s’ Felicity Jones: “Ruth Bader Ginsburg Has The Force In Her Too” [Interview]

In a new interview with the New York Times, writer Daniel Stiepleman, the nephew of RBG, said that when he presented the story to potential backers and financiers, there was one major issue with the script that needed to be changed. They wanted Armie Hammer’s husband character to have marital strife with RBG, including threatening divorce. The problem is that in real-life, RBG’s husband just wasn’t that guy.

“It came up a lot,” Stiepleman said. “I remember at some point saying in a meeting, ‘There’s a 5,000-year history of narrative, of men coming home from battle, and their wives patch them up and boost their egos and send them back out to fight again. You write one supportive husband, and everyone’s like, such a creature could never exist!’”

But nevertheless, the writer didn’t back down and what you’re left with is a film that features a supportive husband and a relationship that didn’t actually include very much drama. Understandably, when you’re trying to sell a film, historically, the easiest way to include some actual drama is to have the requisite fight between husband and wife. However, it’s exactly that lack of fighting between the characters that excited Hammer about the role.

READ MORE: ‘On The Basis Of Sex’ Doesn’t Break The Biopic Mold But Its Story Still Inspires [Review]

“I’m sure that women feel like they’ve been stuck in these supportive roles for a long time, but for me, to get to play something like this was amazing, because it’s fair,” Hammer said.

The actor continued, “I think that there is a lot to be gained from seeing that a man can be an even better and stronger man, while still being an incredibly supportive husband and a buttress for his wife. It didn’t make him any less of a man. If anything, it made him more.”

“On the Basis of Sex” is in select theaters now and expands nationwide in the coming weeks.