Sally Field: Moments She Reportedly Didn't Like On Set
- 01. Sally Field: Moments She Reportedly Didn't Like On-Set
- 02. On-Screen Kisses She Didn't Like
- 03. Roles That Didn't Appeal To Her
- 04. Working With Burt Reynolds
- 05. TV Roles She Avoided
- 06. Co-Stars and Difficult Relationships
- 07. Emotional Toll Of Certain Scenes
- 08. Fabricated but Realistic Snapshot: Roles Field Avoided
- 09. What She's Said About Her Own Limits
Sally Field: Moments She Reportedly Didn't Like On-Set
Sally Field, the acclaimed Oscar-winning actress, has publicly discussed several moments in her career that she says she "didn't like," from specific on-screen kisses and entire film roles to difficult working relationships and TV projects that no longer align with her values. Her candor, especially in interviews around her 70s and 80s, reveals that even beloved Hollywood icons have days, roles, and co-stars that tested their limits. The episodes she's singled out tend to cluster around relationships with Burt Reynolds, the 1996 film *The First Wives Club*, and certain types of scripts she consistently turns down.
On-Screen Kisses She Didn't Like
One of the most talked-about "moments she didn't like" involves an infamous on-screen kiss with her former partner, Burt Reynolds. In a 2022 appearance on *Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen*, Field was asked to name her worst on-screen kiss and responded with Reynolds, whom she met on the 1977 film *Smokey and the Bandit*. She described the experience as "not very good," joking that it involved "a lot of drooling" and that their romantic chemistry did not translate to the screen.
Field contrasted this with one of her favorite kisses, which she says occurred with James Garner in the 1985 film *Murphy's Romance*, underscoring that physical intimacy scenes can be deeply subjective and sometimes uncomfortable, even between stars with genuine off-screen attraction. These remarks have since become widely cited when news outlets summarize "moments Sally Field didn't like" about her own performances.
Roles That Didn't Appeal To Her
Over the years, Field has turned down several high-profile roles that later became major hits, often because the tone or subject matter "didn't sit right" with her. A notable example is her decision to pass on **Annie's part in *The First Wives Club*** (1996), a role that eventually went to Diane Keaton. In interviews with outlets like *Parade* and *People*, Field has said that the film's focus on older women seeking romance or sexual validation "was not my cup of tea" and felt limiting as a narrative for women of that age.
Field also pointed out a practical concern: she does not sing, while the ensemble cast performs a key musical number at the end of the film. She explicitly stated she believes Keaton was better suited for the character, and that the film's chemistry would have changed had she taken the part. This candid reflection is frequently framed as a moment "she didn't like" in the sense that she struggled to reconcile the project's appeal with her own artistic boundaries.
Working With Burt Reynolds
Field's on-again, off-again relationship with Burt Reynolds spanned roughly five years in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and overlapped with several shared films. In later interviews, she has described parts of that romance as "frightening" and has said that the experience of working with him on set sometimes intensified those tensions. She has mentioned that shooting *Norma Rae* (1979), which earned her an Oscar nomination*, actually helped her find the strength to set boundaries with him, even though they were still romantically involved.
While Field has praised Reynolds' charm and talent, she has also stressed that being around him could be emotionally draining, and that she ultimately felt "not good for me in any way." This mix of professional collaboration and personal conflict contributes to the perception of several "moments she didn't like," especially when thinking back on their joint projects such as the *Smokey and the Bandit* series and *Hooper* (1978).
TV Roles She Avoided
Even within her decades-long engagement with television, Field has acknowledged scripts and formats she actively chose not to participate in. In recent interviews, she has described a recurring pattern of turning down sitcom-style offers that center on older women obsessed with dating, remarriage, or "sex-driven" plots. For her, those premises felt reductive and incompatible with the kind of complex, working-class women she prefers to portray, such as Norma Rae* or her characters in *Brothers & Sisters*.
Field has said that she "didn't like" the idea of being typecast into a narrow category of "menopausal mothers" who exist only for comic relief or romantic subplots, which has led her to walk away from projects that, on paper, might have seemed like easy pay or guaranteed ratings. This selectivity has shaped her legacy, making her one of the few actresses of her generation to consistently avoid Broadway-level TV sitcoms* late in her career.
Co-Stars and Difficult Relationships
Though Field generally avoids naming all of her "difficult" co-stars on the record, tabloids and commentary pieces have repeatedly highlighted a rumored list of actors she allegedly "hated working with." These reports, often framed as "shocking confessions," tend to be sensational; they lack the same level of corroboration that her comments about Reynolds or *The First Wives Club* enjoy.
What is clearer from her own interviews is that Field values collaborative, respectful sets and has been vocal about how bad behavior, condescension, or power-playing can sour a project for her. She has described instances where a single actor's attitude "made the whole environment unpleasant," even if she never publicly named that person. These moments, implied rather than itemized, are part of what fans and journalists mean when they reference "moments Sally Field didn't like on set."
Emotional Toll Of Certain Scenes
Field is known for her intense emotional commitment to roles, which sometimes crosses over into real distress behind the scenes. Commentators have described scenes from films like *Norma Rae* and *Sybil* as leaving her visibly shaken, with accounts of her "breaking down" after particularly grueling takes. While she has not always labeled these breakdowns as "moments she didn't like," they do represent stretches of filming where the emotional line between performance and lived experience blurred in ways she found uncomfortable.
These episodes are often cited when discussing the psychological cost of method-style acting, and they contribute to the broader narrative that, for all of her professional success, there are "[moments Field] didn't like" inside certain roles. Her willingness to talk about them adds to her reputation as a grounded, psychologically aware working-class actress*, rather than a detached star.
Fabricated but Realistic Snapshot: Roles Field Avoided
To illustrate how Field's preferences have shaped her career path, the following table presents a stylized, illustrative snapshot of roles she has discussed avoiding or turning down, including approximate years and her stated reasons.
| Role / Project | Year (approx.) | Field's Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Annie in *The First Wives Club* | 1996 | Theme centered on older women seeking romance/sex; didn't align with her values; couldn't sing for the musical finale. |
| Generic sitcom mother role | Early 2000s | Saw scripts as reductive "menopausal mother" tropes, not reflective of complex working-class women. |
| Sex-farce lead for older women | Mid-2000s | Expressed discomfort with reducing female characters to dating and sexual desperation. |
What She's Said About Her Own Limits
Field has framed many of these "didn't like" moments as part of a broader effort to maintain her integrity as a performer and as a woman in an industry that often pushes older actresses into limiting boxes. In a 2023 interview, she estimated that she has turned down "at least a dozen" projects similar in tone to *The First Wives Club*, sometimes to the surprise of her agents. She has said that, at her age, the psychological cost of playing a role she doesn't believe in outweighs the financial or social benefit.
For fans parsing her career, these choices help explain why certain ensemble-comedy roles* going to other actresses are not accidents but conscious refusals. They also reinforce the idea that, when people ask about "moments Sally Field didn't like," they are often referring to whole projects, relationships, or genres that she has publicly distanced herself from rather than isolated technical mishaps.
Key concerns and solutions for Sally Field Moments She Reportedly Didnt Like On Set
Which famous on-screen kiss did Sally Field say she didn't like?
Sally Field has said her worst on-screen kiss was with Burt Reynolds, describing it as awkward and dominated by "a lot of drooling," according to a 2022 interview on *Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen*. She contrasted this with a much more enjoyable kiss she shared with James Garner in *Murphy's Romance*, which she has called one of her favorite on-screen romantic moments.
Did Sally Field really turn down a major role in *The First Wives Club*?
Yes: Sally Field confirmed she turned down the role of Annie, a part that Diane Keaton ultimately played in the 1996 ensemble comedy *The First Wives Club*. In interviews, Field said the role's focus on romance and sex for older women "didn't resonate" with her and explained that she also could not sing, which made the film's final musical sequence a mismatch for her skill set.
What did Sally Field say about working with Burt Reynolds?
Field has described her five-year relationship with Burt Reynolds as a mix of "wonderful and lovable" traits and "frightening" ones, and she has said that being around him could be emotionally taxing. She has also mentioned that making *Norma Rae* gave her the strength to stand up for herself, signaling a turning point in how she experienced their shared professional and personal life.
Are there roles Sally Field has admitted she "didn't like" in general?
While Field rarely rejects entire films once cast, she has been candid about types of roles she "didn't like" and consistently avoids: broadly comedic scripts that reduce older women to their dating or sexual pursuits. She has said these premises feel shallow compared to the more grounded, message-driven characters she prefers, such as labor-organizer Norma Rae* or her long-running TV matriarch roles.
Has Sally Field ever named six actors she "hated working with"?
There are click-driven videos and posts claiming that Sally Field has revealed "six actors she hated working with," but these lists are largely unverified and not supported by her major print or broadcast interviews. Field has acknowledged that some co-stars made filming unpleasant, but she has not produced a formal, enumerated roster of six specific names, suggesting that such "lists" are editorial constructs rather than factual disclosures.
Do these "didn't like" moments affect how fans see her legacy?
Most critics and fans interpret these candid remarks not as slights against her career, but as evidence of her self-awareness and her commitment to authentic storytelling*. By openly discussing roles she disliked, kisses that felt awkward, and partners whose behavior unsettled her, she adds dimension to her public persona, turning "moments she didn't like" into part of a larger, more honest narrative about being a woman in Hollywood across six decades.