Uma Thurman nearly abandoned acting altogether before landing her career-defining role in Pulp Fiction. She admitted an “icky Hollywood experience” left her questioning whether she wanted to remain in the industry.
Talking with Bear Grylls
The actress, 56, reflected on her early years in Hollywood during an appearance on Running Wild with Bear Grylls. Thurman spoke candidly while trekking through the wilderness with the show’s adventurer host on the latest episode of the Tubi program. She discussed her struggles with dyslexia, her insecurities as a young performer, and the experience that almost pushed her out of acting before her breakthrough in Quentin Tarantino’s 1994 crime classic.
Speaking about taking the role of Mia Wallace opposite John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson in Pulp Fiction, Uma said, “It just seemed like this super cool, independent movie – and I loved (Quentin), he was fantastic.”
Uma also explained she had already been considering walking away from acting entirely after a previous negative experience on another production.
She said, “I’d actually had a difficult work experience that I’d had before I made that movie that I’d shared with (Quentin), and I’d lost my way. I was thinking of quitting.”
Uma added, “I’d had like a typical icky Hollywood experience, but once I did (Pulp Fiction) and saw what real film and cinema was, I was like, ‘Oh, I want to do this.’”
Career Insecurity
The A-lister also reflected on the insecurity she felt throughout much of her career despite becoming one of Hollywood’s best-known actresses during the 1990s.
She said, “I kept expecting that the gig would be up, that I would be shuffled back. I was always nervous, I’ve been nervous most of my life, I thought nervousness was my edge… but, I’m debunking it. I feel like I navigated it pretty well.”
Riding Accident
Uma also discussed the serious riding accident she suffered in 2016. It left her with multiple broken bones after she was thrown from a horse.
She told Bear, “I lost control of a horse that was too good for me. I broke my chassis: ribcage, a little bit of my back… breaking the pelvis is so painful.”
Uma said her recovery was lengthy. It involved using both a wheelchair and a walker before learning to walk properly again.
She added, “(I recovered) slowly. I had to have a wheelchair, and then I had to have a walker, and then I had to walk again – in the long run, I turned it into a reset that has been a steady build from it.”
Enduring Impact in Film
The renewed attention on Uma’s career comes as interest in Quentin’s films continues following ongoing discussions about the director’s long-delayed final movie project. Pulp Fiction remains one of the most influential independent films of the modern era.
Uma also continues to be closely associated with Tarantino’s Kill Bill: Volume 1 and Kill Bill: Volume 2. In both films, she played the Bride, one of the defining action roles of the 2000s.