12 Movies That Were Almost Directed By Steven Spielberg
10. Cape Fear
The project in a nutshell: A remake of the dark 1962 thriller starring Robert Mitchum and Gregory Peck, centred on an ex-convict who sets about getting revenge on the attorney he holds responsible for sending him down.
When was Spielberg attached: Early on its development.
Who ended up directing it: Martin Scorcese, in 1991, with Robert De Niro and Nick Nolte in the lead roles. De Niro got a Best Actor Oscar nomination, whilst young newcomer Juliette Lewis was nominated for Best Supporting Actress.
What happened: Spielberg had a change of heart. For one, he felt Cape Fear was too dark and violent for his liking; for another, he felt a far greater personal connection to another project he was developing, Schindler's List.
At that time, Scorcese was attached to direct Schindler's List, but was having difficulty with it himself. The directors swapped projects, and the rest is history: Cape Fear became Scorcese's biggest commercial success up to that point, whilst Schindler's List wound up one of Spielberg's masterpieces, and won him his first Oscars.