Bradley Cooper Had A “Crazy” Meeting With Beyoncé For A Star Is Born

Bradley Cooper had a “crazy” meeting with Beyoncé and Jay-Z when casting A Star Is Born.

Cooper, who made his directorial debut with the 2018 film, had originally wanted Queen Bey for the role of Ally, which ultimately went to Lady Gaga.

He revealed during a recent interview with the SAG-AFTRA Foundation that he pitched Beyoncé to studio executive Greg Silverman, who said he’d agree to make the film if Bey was the lead and they could “make it for under $25 million.”

From there, Cooper, who played Jackson Maine in the movie, was tasked with getting the “Texas Hold ‘Em” singer on board during a meeting at her home.

“I went to Beyoncé’s house, and Jay-Z was watching Judge Judy, I still remember. I’m not kidding. I was freaking [out]. I remember I had this weird cough when I was pitching it to her,” he said. “It was crazy. She was incredible, and so was he, and we developed it for like a year together,” he continued, ultimately saying that it “fell through.”

Cooper also revealed that watching Lady Gaga perform live at a benefit concert was the moment he found his leading lady.

“It just blew the doors off of the whole place,” he recalled during the SAG-AFTRA interview. “It was in that moment where it was like, ‘That’s it. What was I even thinking?’ And then I asked to meet her.”

Gaga — real name Stefani Germanotta — was cast in the role and helped the 2018 musical-drama become a critical and commercial success. Cooper and his co-lead were both nominated in multiple categories at the 2019 Academy Awards, at which Gaga took home the Oscar for Best Original Song with “Shallow.”

Another Singer Was Considered

Queen Bey and Mother Monster weren’t Cooper’s only co-star picks. Speaking at the 2024 Santa Barbara International Film Festival on Feb. 8, the actor disclosed that he had “thought about Adele” during casting.

“It was like, his career’s not great. He goes abroad,” he said, revealing how the movie’s plot might’ve played out with Adele as the lead. “He meets this woman, but no — and then that never even took off at all.”