Little-known mistakes and bloopers in True Lies
Jamie Lee Curtis was wow. But I never knew she was so wow – until I recently rewatched her in True Lies.
This 1994 movie blended action, comedy, and drama in a way that captivated audiences and made it a cult classic.
But did you know that the film nearly killed its lead character, Arnold Schwarzenegger? And did you catch Jamie Lee Curtis’s unforgettable revealing underwear bloopers?
True Lies has always been one of my favorites. Being born in the ’80s, I’ve probably seen it over 10 times. Great storyline, awesome action, and fantastic actors. It might even be my favorite Arnold Schwarzenegger film. For those who haven’t seen it, here’s a quick recap:
The film follows Harry Tasker, a seemingly ordinary man who leads a secret life as a government spy. When his bored wife, played by Jamie Lee Curtis, unknowingly gets caught up in his dangerous world, it leads to a mix of action, suspense, and comedy.
It’s worth noting that True Lies also features a strong supporting cast, including Tom Arnold, Bill Paxton, Art Malik, and Tia Carrere, all of whom deliver memorable performances that add to the charm of this classic film.
Schwarzenegger’s near-fatal accident on set
During the intense horse-riding scene in True Lies, Arnold Schwarzenegger had a terrifying near-miss that could’ve ended in disaster.
As the cameras rolled, his horse suddenly got spooked and bolted out of control. With no time to react, Arnold had to think fast — he managed to slide off the saddle, but in the worst possible spot, just inches from a 30-foot drop.
The chaos started when the crew set up a shot where the horse had to stop at the edge of a building. To give it more room, they built a small ramp. But while measuring the new distance to the camera, someone accidentally dropped the camera arm — right onto the horse’s nose. The startled animal panicked, spinning and rearing on a ramp that was only four feet wide, with no railing.
”I realized it was a bad situation and slid off the horse right away, and a stuntman grabbed me,” Schwarzenegger later recalled. ”If the horse stepped a foot the wrong way, we would have fallen 90 feet onto a cement floor.”
The funniest lines in True Lies
One of the funniest lines in True Lies has a surprisingly real backstory.
When Harry Tasker confides in his partner Gib about suspecting his wife of having an affair, Albert Gibson, played by Tom Arnold, responds with a bitter rant about his own divorce. He recalls how his ex-wife took everything when she left — ”even the ice cube trays from the freezer!”
What makes this moment even better is that it wasn’t just a scripted joke — it was inspired by real life. At the time, Tom Arnold was going through a messy divorce from Roseanne Barr, and, as it turns out, she really did take the ice cube trays when she moved out.
Arnold had vented about it to director James Cameron on set, saying, “What kind of sick bitch takes the ice cube trays out of the freezer?” Cameron found the line so hilarious that he decided to work it into the script.
The audition joke that won Tom Arnold a role
Speaking of Tom Arnold, many might not know that he never actually expected to land a role in True Lies. He only went to the audition for a chance to meet director James Cameron.
During the audition, he read some scenes with Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Cameron immediately picked up on their natural chemistry. Afterward, Tom jokingly told Cameron, ”[Schwarzenegger]’s not that big, I think I can take him.” That unexpected comment cracked Cameron up — and just like that, Tom had secured the role.
Tom Arnold later mentioned that he had the same great chemistry with Arnold Schwarzenegger off-screen as they did on-screen. They became good friends during the filming of True Lies.