Will Smith, Eva Mendes and seduction lessons that made a few hearts beat: the romantic comedy “Hitch, Expert in Seduction” is available on Netflix.
A few days before Valentine’s Day, Netflix is adding Hitch, an expert in seduction, to its catalog. This film released in 2005, directed by Will Smith, follows Alex Hitchens, a professional matchmaker who uses unorthodox means to coach his clients and play with destiny.
Despite a small budget of $70 million and fairly mixed reviews (3.2/5), Hitch is one of the cult romantic comedies, and the 5th most profitable in the history of cinema.
With 180 million greenbacks won worldwide, it ranks just behind The Proposal, Greek Wedding, Crazy Rich Asians and Pretty Woman.
A film in which Eva Mendes could not have starred. The one who lends her features to a New York journalist who falls under the hero’s spell did not want to appear in Hitch.
In this interview given a few years agothe actress of Cuban origin explains that during this period she wanted to work in more serious films (she had gained popularity at that time thanks to Fast & Furious):
“I gave him a chance when I read the script and said to myself that it wasn’t possible. I love Will but I wanted to be a serious actress. I didn’t want to make romantic comedies. But I was stupid. Meeting Will and Jada (Pinkett-Smith) was one of the highlights of my career. Working with them and with Sony was so much fun.”
A sequel for Hitch?
The presence of Will Smith in the cast – a bankable star at the time – allowed the film to be a hit at the box office… which benefited Eva Mendes. In 2020, when Hitch celebrated its 15th birthday, the actress, who nevertheless put her career aside, made it known that she was up for a Hitch 2.
At a time when dating applications are plentiful, it would indeed be interesting to see how our seduction expert could help his clients.
If a sequel is not on the cards at the moment (but you never know), a spin-off series could well see the light of day. It was even in the pipeline about ten years ago on the Fox side, before the project was buried for good… but until when?
Hitch is available on Netflix.