Tommy Lee Jones scored an Oscar after improvising this famous line
It turns out that arguably one of the most famous lines in the 1993 film, “The Fugitive,” was totally improvised by Tommy Lee Jones. It’s the scene where Jones’ character, Deputy U.S. Marshal Sam Gerard, chases Dr. Richard Kimble, played by Harrison Ford, onto a dam after Kimble is accused of murdering his spouse. “I didn’t kill my wife!” Kimble tells Gerard, who then replies, “I don’t care!”
According to What Culture, the line Lee was supposed to say was, “So you didn’t kill your wife,” and it could be argued those words didn’t capture the sheer desperation his character might’ve felt at the time … because he did have a gun pointed at him, let’s not forget. Per The Atlantic, this type of improvisation was par for the course for director Andrew Davis and Jones’ onscreen collaborations. “Jones, a Texan who graduated from Harvard with an English degree, had worked twice before with Davis, who knew Jones did a lot of rewriting and improvising,” the outlet notes. “The cast … established their characters alongside Jones, coming up with dialogue on the fly.”
Considering Jones nabbed an Oscar win for his supporting role in “The Fugitive,” it’s safe to say that his delivery of his improvised “I don’t care” line helped him secure that coveted golden statue.