"I suddenly became funny and sexual": Jane Seymour reflects on breaking stereotypes with Wedding Crashers role

As Wedding Crashers celebrates its 20th anniversary, Jane Seymour has opened up on how the 2005 comedy allegedly changed the way older women are portrayed in Hollywood. The beloved film is all set to return to select theaters in December 2025.

Jane Seymour is now 74. She shared with People that the bold character Kathleen Cleary was a necessary challenge for her. The actress shared that she was hesitant at first:

"I can't do this. I just did Dr. Quinn. And then my then-husband, James Keach, said, 'You can't do this. Dr. Quinn's fans are going to go nuts.'"

Despite this initial hesitation, something about the script felt seemingly right to Jane Seymour. She shared,

"I have to play this role. I just know exactly what I would do with it, and this is hilarious and iconic."

She also added:

"How funny is that? That I was previously known as the oldest virgin on television in Dr. Quinn. It was hilarious, really, that I suddenly became funny and sexual at a time when most women are invisible. In life, when women turn 50, they pretty much go under a rock and are ignored. And Kathleen was not going to be ignored."

Behind the famous Wedding Crashers scene involving Jane Seymour

According to reports, the film's humor relied mainly on improvisation. Jane Seymour revealed that one of the most quoted lines came from Owen Wilson. The actress described filming the bedroom encounter, where her character confidently propositions Wilson's character, John Beckwith.

Seymour shared:

"He whispered to me, 'When we finish the scene and I leave, just say, "pervert,"'... That was 100% Owen. It was not scripted. The director did not know we were going to do it. Nobody knew. It was brilliant."

Jane Seymour also spoke about her character in Wedding Crashers, stating:

"I auditioned, and it was really kind funny because the producer and director had only ever seen me in one thing in my entire career. I think at that point, I had maybe done played at least 140-something different characters. And the bit they did not realize was that it would be even funnier to a certain audience to have me play that role because of all the other work I'd done."

Seymour is currently starring in the Acorn TV series Harry Wild, where she plays Harriet "Harry" Wild. Shedding some light on her role, the actress shared:

"She has her own way of doing things. She never got married, and that is part of her character. She is also intelligent. And I think it's inspiring to women to see that life, you can have a romance, you can have that kind of a life later on in life."

As of 2025, Jane Seymour's net worth is $60 million.

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