Very odd. I can't see Prince agreeing to make a fool of himself playing this ridiculous character. I can only assume the script suggested something quite different before Tucker turned it into what it became.

Prince did not like the clothes. the costume designer was on Graham norton and he too told the story. One of the costumes basically looked like a nude suit with pubic hair on it..the clothes weren't the ones in the film, that is for sure.

For those that say they can't see Prince playing that ridiculous character, remember that we only know it as how Tucker brought it to life. Had Prince done it, the direction and humor might have been different. Obviously, Prince wouldn't have flamed out like Tucker did but, rather, brought his own flair to the shot. It could have been a fun cameo for Prince. And he's fucking Prince. He could have altered the costume with a bit of push, if he wanted it bad enough. Apparently, he didn't.

TrivialPursuit said:

For those that say they can't see Prince playing that ridiculous character, remember that we only know it as how Tucker brought it to life. Had Prince done it, the direction and humor might have been different. Obviously, Prince wouldn't have flamed out like Tucker did but, rather, brought his own flair to the shot. It could have been a fun cameo for Prince. And he's fucking Prince. He could have altered the costume with a bit of push, if he wanted it bad enough. Apparently, he didn't.

That's funny, because I wasn't familiar and had to google a clip, and the clip I saw, I was like "I SOOOO can see Prince doing this". But you're right, I saw him doing the character with that Prince sexiness, swagger and his wry sense of humor and comedic style.

Oh Lawd! This is so freaking funny to me. Why? Because for years I've been telling people that Chris Tucker totally ripped off Prince's persona for this role. Every time I see clips of Tucker in this movie I think of Prince. Sorry, folks, not being mean spirited here as I actually like what Tucker did with the role.

It would be a gloried cameo if Prince did it. There would be less slapstick and more of a mystery of who Ruby Rhod was. He would probably come out and do a song, introduce the alien opera singer, and that would be it.

You could tell the director liked Chris Tucker so much, he extended the role longer than it should've been. He adds nothing to the story after they escape the cruise ship. When they were trying to figure out how to activate the stones, I thought that would be Ruby Rhod moment to show why he was there. But no, Corben Dallas ends up activating his stone. It was completely pointless for him to be there storywise.

[Edited 6/6/18 17:51pm]

Chris Tucker was cool in Silver Linings Playbook and Jackie Brown. But he was irritating as hell in the Fifth Element. I get he was supposed to be Prince. But the reality is that it was an insulting and ill-conceived caricature. Its fine that the character is supposed to be androgynous and a diva, but he should also be sexy and charming..(the girls are falling all over him in movie..) Instead he comes off way too affeminate, shrill and like he's on speed (not sensual or mysterious) I wish Prince had been in it. Even if he just did his Christopher Tracy impersonation, had a few lines and side-eye facial expressions and sang a song, it would have been infinitely better.

[Edited 6/6/18 18:08pm]

Thanks for sharing Latin!

This movie is a favorite of mine and the first time I saw it it was clear the character was based on Prince. I loved the character and I guess I'm in the minority but I think it would have been a pretty good move for Prince IF he would have been able to pull it off as well as Tucker did.

[Edited 6/18/18 11:08am]

pinkcashmere23 said:

Oh, that's just the part Chris Tucker knows about! Here's the full story:

https://io9.gizmodo.com/f...1458143168