After Tom Selleck was famously denied the chance to play the role of Indiana Jones in the blockbuster 1981 action-adventure film Raiders of the Lost Ark, Selleck made his feature starring debut with a Raiders of the Lost Ark imitator, the 1983 adventure film High Road to China, also known as Raiders of the End of the World, which nonetheless performed respectably at the box office and showed that he possessed a genuine screen presence.
Selleck’s dexterity and effortless charm were effectively showcased in his next feature starring vehicle, the 1984 spy thriller Lassiter, in which the actor exudes the kind of suaveness and wit that would have made him an interesting choice for the role of James Bond. However, Lassiter was a box-office failure, as was his next film, the 1984 science fiction thriller Runaway. By the fall of 1987, with Magnum, P.I. in its eighth and final season, Selleck’s bid for film stardom seemed to be over. Then came the 1987 comedy film Three Men and a Baby, which became the highest-grossing domestic film in 1987. Moreover, much of the critical praise for Three Men and a Baby was directed toward Selleck, whose sensitive performance inspired comparisons to Cary Grant.
Selleck’s next starring film vehicle was the 1989 romantic comedy Her Alibi, in which he plays a mystery novelist who falls in love at first sight with a mystery woman who may or may not be a murderer. However, Her Alibi became a commercial and critical failure. While the film’s disappointing performance didn’t immediately halt the momentum created by Three Men and a Baby, Her Alibi served as a bad omen for his ensuing starring film career, which was practically over within four years.
Her Alibi Is Tom Selleck’s Worst Movie
Excluding Tom Selleck’s embarrassing supporting role in the disastrous 1992 historical adventure film Christopher Columbus: The Discovery, in which he simply looks ridiculous sporting a bad wig for the role of King Ferdinand V, Her Alibi represents his worst starring film vehicle, despite the fact that Her Alibi was directed by the estimable Bruce Beresford, whose impressive feature credits include Black Robe, Breaker Morant, Driving Miss Daisy, and Tender Mercies.
In Her Alibi, Selleck plays Phil Blackwood, a mystery novelist who, as the film opens, is in a career slump. To gain creative inspiration, Phil attends courtroom trials. During one of these courtroom sessions, Phil catches his first glimpse of Nina, a gorgeous Romanian murder suspect. Instantly captivated by Nina, played by model Paulina Porizkova, Phil impulsively decides to invent an alibi for Nina to gain her release into Phil’s custody.
Phil does this without a complete understanding of the crime for which Nina has been charged, the evidence that the police have against her, and the legal repercussions attached to providing a fake alibi. Needless to say, this represents quite a leap of faith on the part of Phil for a woman he doesn’t know. For this premise to be compelling, one must believe that Phil’s attraction for Nina is so strong that it could conceivably force him into such illogical behavior. This requires two stars with magnetic romantic screen chemistry. However, as Nina, Porizkova, who is 20 years younger than Selleck, never seems particularly interested in him, whose character seems more like a babysitter to Nina than a potential lover.
Because of this casting mismatch and the film’s deeply flawed premise, Her Alibi fails to generate any suspense and tension regarding whether Nina is capable of murdering Phil. These characters don’t register strongly enough for viewers to care whether they live, die, or fall in love.
Selleck Was Forced Back to Television
Beyond Three Men and a Baby, Tom Selleck’s most successful starring feature film vehicle was the 1990 sequel, Three Men and a Little Lady, which grossed over $70 million at the domestic box office. However, because the sequel’s box office gross was less than half that of the first film, the sequel was perceived to be a flop. Besides Three Men and a Little Lady, none of the movies Selleck starred in between 1989 and 1992 grossed more than $22 million at the domestic box office, including the 1992 sports comedy film Mr. Baseball, which marked the end of his starring feature film career.
Selleck’s return to series television began in 1996, beginning with his well-received recurring role as Monica Geller’s romantic interest, Dr. Richard Burke, on the sitcom Friends. In 1998, he made his return to series television as a star with the CBS sitcom The Closer, which was canceled after just 10 episodes. In 2007, the actor joined the cast of the NBC drama series Las Vegas, replacing James Caan at the beginning of the show’s fifth season. By this point, Selleck had established himself as lawman Jesse Stone in the Jesse Stone made-for-television film series, which presently encompasses nine films.
Selleck Could Have Been a Great Movie Star
As a big, strong man who could be alternately gentle and tough, Tom Selleck could have taken up the mantle of Clark Gable and Gary Cooper, possibly in combination, if he had started out at another point in time. Unfortunately, this isn’t what Hollywood was looking for in the 1980s and 1990s. The sense that Selleck’s career was stuck in a time warp is reflected most clearly in the 1990 Western film Quigley Down Under, in which his authentic presence provides strong evidence that the actor, who is set to turn 80 in several months, could have been a big Western star in the 1940s and 1950s.
Of course, Selleck’s legacy was completely altered by his performance as New York City Police Commissioner Frank Reagan on the police procedural television series Blue Bloods, which is set to end after 14 seasons. For Selleck, the role of Frank Reagan has completely overshadowed the rest of his career, most especially his star-crossed feature film career, which has essentially been forgotten over time. Her Alibi is available to rent on Prime Video and Apple TV.