Fun 'Pulp Fiction' Fact: Bruce Willis Was A Very Good Friend to The Gimp
Two decades after the sweaty, twisted, anonymous and apparently delightful experience of being Quentin Tarantino’s leather-clad sex slave, Steve Hibbert has very fond memories of his time on the set of Pulp Fiction.
The actor and writer, whose biggest credit remains the feral captive in the iconic, Oscar-winning movie, says that despite his pitiful on-screen condition, he was well taken care of behind-the-scenes — by none other than one of the film’s biggest stars, Bruce Willis.
"I have a very vivid memory of him saying, ‘Hey, let’s move on! We got a poor guy in a head-to-toe leather outfit here. Let’s go!’" Hibbert told Vulture in a recent interview to commemorate the film’s twentieth anniversary.
Willis wasn’t just a pal on-set, he was also a drinking buddy off of it.
"Because everyone was kind of on equal footing on that movie, in terms of pay, it was an ensemble piece," Hibbert said. "We would all hang out at Bruce Willis’s trailer and drink at the end of the day, because he had a little veranda set up. And we’d watch baseball games. I think his assistant was making everyone gin-and-tonics — apparently one of the requirements of the job! And that’s a refreshing drink when it’s hot."
So yeah, sure, he could barely move in his costume and dripped sweat for hours on end, but it was worth it. Willis even turned getting punched in the face into a fond memory, since, as Hibbert said, “Bruce hugged me afterwards to make sure I was okay.”
Maybe Willis was just method acting, since his Butch Coolidge really was a bit of a softie at heart.
Hibbert, who met Tarantino while hanging out back stage at Saturday Night Live with his then-wife Julia Sweeney, has largely served as a writer throughout his show biz career, with a majority of his credits coming on kids shows like Tiny Toon Adventures and Boy Meets World. Because no one could see his face in Pulp Fiction, it was never all that useful for acting — he’s had bit parts in movies like Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me and National Treasure — and has also enabled people to steal his biggest credit. Or try to, anyway.
"My favorite thing is, people have claimed to be the Gimp, and have been called out for it. Phil LaMarr, who’s in the film as well — he’s the young man [named Marvin] who gets his head blown off in the back of the car — he was at a party, this was a number of years ago, and he overheard this guy hitting on a gal, claiming to have played the Gimp in Pulp Fiction!” Hibbert remembered. “It just seems like one of the worst ways — or maybe one of the best, depending on your predilection! — to try and pick someone up. So Phil went up to him and said, ‘Hey, man! I was in Pulp Fiction, too! How’s it going?’ And the guy immediately was like, ‘Uh ….’ and just backtracked away, and ran away, basically. So apparently, people have tried.”
Why anyone would think being The Gimp is a good pickup line is a question for another time.
