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After her 1996 divorce from King Charles III<\/strong> (then the Prince of Wales), Princess Diana<\/a> dreamed of a new beginning. Diana famously felt out of place in the Windsor household<\/a>, and upon her exit, yearned for big changes. According to a newly released book<\/a> by one of Diana’s former butlers, that desire for change reached all the way to the United States, where she considered the possibility of starring in a Hollywood film alongside none other than Kevin Costner<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n Back in 1992, The Bodyguard<\/em>, co-starring Costner and Whitney Houston, took over cinemas and seduced millions of romantics. The drama followed the tumultuous love affair between bodyguard Frank Farmer (Costner) and his protectee, Rachel Marron (Houston), an up-and-coming R&B singer. The film proved to be a huge success, grossing over $411 million at the box office worldwide. The film’s soundtrack, featuring international hits such as Houston’s \u201cI Will Always Love You\u201d and \u201cI Have Nothing,\u201d was also an instant and sweeping success. Costner, both a star and producer of the film, dreamed of a second home run. In a proposed Bodyguard II<\/em>, his bodyguard character would be assigned to protect a princess harassed by paparazzi, ideally played by Diana. Costner approached Sarah Ferguson,<\/strong> the aristocrat’s former sister-in-law and friend, about the project, and Fergie then connected him to Diana. Princess Diana’s former butler, Paul Burrell,<\/strong> recalled this anecdote in his book, The Royal Insider: My Life with the Queen, the King and Princess Diana<\/a>,<\/em> excerpted by the Daily Mail<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cShe was approached to appear in The Bodyguard II<\/em> alongside Kevin Costner,\u201d the former butler wrote. \u201cI put the call from Mr. Costner through to her in the sitting room and heard fits of giggles with her saying, ‘But I can’t sing! What would I be expected to do? I’m not sure but yes, OK, send it and I promise I will have a look.’\u201d According to Burrell, Diana was flattered by the filmmaker’s interest in her, although she remained perplexed: \u201cHe can’t be serious,\u201d she reportedly told him. But the script for Bodyguard II<\/em><\/a> did reach her home, though Burrell had no idea whether she read it. Nevertheless, confirmed that the princess turned down the offer, thinking that this highly challenging project was \u201centirely impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n Costner has also spoken about the project in several interviews, including one on The Howard Stern<\/em> Show<\/a> in 2024, where his recollections diverged from Burrell’s. In fact, according to Costner, Lady Diana was more than up for the challenge, including an onscreen entanglement with him.<\/p>\n \u201cShe goes, \u2018My life\u2019s about to change,\u2019\u201d Costner said. \u201cShe said, \u2018Is there going to be a kissing scene?\u2019 And I said, \u2018Do you want there to be one?\u2019 And she said, \u2018Yeah.\u2019 And I said, \u2018Then we\u2019ll do that.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n The romantic scene never came to fruition, as Princess Diana died car accident under the Pont de l’Alma in Paris on August 31, 1997. Nevertheless, years later, Costner had the opportunity to chat with Diana\u2019s eldest son, Prince William<\/strong>. \u201cHe looked at me and said: \u2018My mom kind of fancied you,\u2019\u201d the actor recalled last year<\/a>. Costner called the admission \u201cthe sweetest, kindest thing ever.\u201d<\/p>\n Originally published in Vanity Fair France<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n