The weird facts you never knew about Jerry Maguire

Tom Cruise and Cuba Gooding Jnr in the movie Jerry Maguire. Photo / supplied

Who auditioned in the nude? Who was really meant to star as Jerry Maguire and why did one of the actor's ban his father from visiting the set?

Here's what you never knew about Cameron Crowe's hit movie which was released 20 years ago:

WHO WAS REALLY MEANT TO PLAY JERRY?

Tom Hanks was originally supposed to play Jerry. Photo / Supplied

Crowe both wrote and directed Jerry Maguire and was passionate about getting the story right. He took almost four years to finish the story and had written it with Tom Hanks in mind, he told Empire Magazine.

By the time Hanks got the script he was almost 40, had two Oscars in his trophy cabinet and was in the middle of directing his own movie That Thing You Do.

A lot of people didn't think Cruise would do the movie either. Crowe has said "agents of other actors called regularly, saying all kinds of things to promote their clients, from, 'Be realistic, you'll never get Cruise', to, 'Cruise will never play a loser'."

In the end, Cruise fell for the script and the character, and after two months of discussions including Cruise studying video tapes of sports agents to Crowe shaping the movie to be more of a younger man's story, Cruise finally decided to take the iconic role.

WHO ALMOST PLAYED DOROTHY?

Connie Britton came so close to playing Dorothy. Photo / Supplied

Jerry Maguire made Renée Zellweger an international star, but she almost missed out on the role.

Friday Night Lights star Connie Britton revealed to The New York Times in 2013 that she thought the role was hers.

"I loved the script, the role - I was like, 'Oh, my gosh, this is incredible'," Britton said.

Cameron Crowe reportedly loved her audition and Britton even did a table read with Cruise. But then she heard the horrible words, "they just want to screen-test one other actress".

That actress was Zellweger who won the part.

"It was heartbreak," Britton said.

A PANTS DROP FOR THE PART

Cuba Gooding Jr put it all out there to get the part. Photo / Supplied

Cuba Gooding Jr went above and beyond to land the role of pro footballer Rod Tidwell.
According to Cameron Crowe, the actor stripped naked during his audition.

"I announced that we would read the locker room scene in which a bitter Rod Tidwell has just emerged from the shower, dripping wet, to browbeat his agent over the disappointing details of a contract negotiation," Crowe wrote in Rolling Stone.

Gooding Jr asked the director if his character was naked in this scene, to which Crowe said yes.

"Gooding snapped down his pants and stood naked," Crowe wrote.

"Stunned and laughing, we watched as Gooding beckoned with his hands, as in, 'Bring it on'. 'Come on, let's read the scene', he shouted joyously. 'I'm gonna get this part. I ain't afraid of nothing. I'm gonna knock this motherf***** out of the park!'"

Gooding Jr of course went on to win the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

THAT FAMOUS LINE

Jerry Maguire is a movie filled with memorable lines.

The most famous is arguably, "Show me the money," but a close second would have to be, "You complete me".

But as Cameron Crowe revealed to The Hollywood Reporter, he planned to cut that line from the script ... until Tom Cruise stepped in.

"He said, 'Uh, I love that line. Why don't you give me a crack at it'," Crowe wrote.

After a marathon night of filming, Cruise finally got to try the line in a scene at 4am.

"By the end of his speech, everybody was in tears," Crowe wrote. "Across the room, Renee (Zellweger) was a wreck. Tom had delivered the line so powerfully and so directly to her, she was still getting over it."

JONATHAN LIPNICKI GOT HOT

Jonathan Lipnicki: then and now. Photos / Instagram

Jonathan Lipnicki was just six years old when he starred as Ray Boyd in the film but he almost missed out on his big break.

"I didn't get cast originally in Jerry Maguire," he said to the AV Club.

"They cast another kid and they shot two weeks with him. I'd already auditioned for it and they were just like, 'Yeah, whatever,' and they went and cast this kid. It wasn't working out so they had to recast the role.

"Luckily they eventually let me come in and I auditioned again. That day, they flew me to Arizona where they were shooting a lot of the football stuff, and I read for Tom [Cruise] and Cameron [Crowe] in Tom's trailer, and that was it."

Now 25, Lipnicki is still acting and FYI he's ripped as sh** thanks to Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

"Martial arts teach you a lot about life, it's a great way to decompress, but also it's humbling," he said to the Huffington Post.

"I think it's been a really positive influence in my life and has kept me really grounded. There's always someone out there who can kick your a** and I think that's a good lesson."

BANNED DAD

Cuba Gooding Jr's Dad's first meeting with Tom Cruise went so bad he was never allowed back on set. Photo / Getty Images

It's a well-known fact that dads can be embarrassing.

But Gooding Jr.'s dad was so embarrassing when he visited the set of Jerry Maguire that his actor son banned him from visiting a second time.

As Gooding revealed to talk show host Graham Norton, the mortifying incident took place when he introduced his dad to Tom Cruise.

"He gave Tom Cruise a hug and said, 'I love you man. Now seriously, are you gay or not?'
"I almost fainted," Gooding Jr. said.

"And thought, please lord let me disappear. Tom just laughed and said 'no'."