Steven Spielberg has long harbored a passion for musicals, dating back to his childhood fascination with the genre. So it may come as a surprise to learn that the acclaimed director once tried to shoehorn a song and dance number into one of his most acclaimed (and darkest) sci-fi films - "A.I. Artificial Intelligence".
What this really means is that Spielberg's creative vision was not solely confined to the dystopian, melancholic tones of "A.I.". The acclaimed filmmaker wanted to infuse the film with a touch of musical magic, reflecting his lifelong love of the genre. However, due to budget and time constraints, Spielberg was ultimately forced to abandon his plans for a musical interlude.
Spielberg's Enduring Passion for Musicals
Spielberg's affinity for musicals can be traced back to his youth, when he was captivated by the works of legendary composers like Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim. As The Ringer reports, the director's mother, Leah, played the piano constantly during his formative years, instilling in him a deep appreciation for music and song.
This passion would eventually manifest itself in Spielberg's filmography, most notably with his 2021 remake of the classic musical "West Side Story". But long before that, the director had been toying with the idea of incorporating musical elements into his other projects, including the brooding sci-fi tale of "A.I.".
Abandoning the Musical Number
According to SlashFilm, Spielberg and the late lyricist Stephen Sondheim were both in favor of cutting the musical number from "A.I.", feeling that it didn't quite fit the film's overall tone. As Spielberg explained, "The reason was that in the original [Robert Wise] and [Jerome Robbins] film, 'I Feel Pretty' presages the rumble. It happens when Tony and Maria know they're existent in the world together and she's celebrating the happiest moment of her life. But in the original play, and the reason as Sondheim explained to me that it came to be, is because they came to him and said, 'You need to write an upbeat number because at the end of the Second Act, Bernardo and Riff are dead, and the audience is sobbing out by the concessions area, and we come back with something to lift their spirits.'"
Ultimately, Spielberg's screenwriter, Tony Kushner, was the one who convinced the director to keep the musical number in the film, arguing that it served an important narrative purpose. The bigger picture here is that while Spielberg's vision for "A.I." may have been a bit more eclectic than what audiences ultimately saw, his enduring passion for musicals continued to shape his creative process, even in his darkest and most cerebral sci-fi works.