As an OG member of the Brat Pack in the 1980s, the onetime highest-paid actress alive for '90s classics like Rob Reiner's "A Few Good Men," Adrian Lyne's "Indecent Proposal" and Ridley Scott's "G.I. Jane," and now an Oscar nominee for her fearless performance as an aging celebrity in the body horror flick "The Substance", Demi Moore is a downright Hollywood icon.
The actress's latter role as Elisabeth Sparkle—a fading movie star-turned-TV aerobics instructor who uses a black-market drug to create a much younger version of herself (played by Margaret Qualley), with unexpected and shockingly gory side effects — has already nabbed Moore a Golden Globe win for Best Actress. Will she be able to replicate that success at the Academy Awards next month?
While we wait to see if "Demi Moore, Oscar winner" becomes a reality, it's a great time to revisit the star in one of her seminal roles: as the artsy Molly Jensen in the 1990 supernatural romance "Ghost." Starring opposite Patrick Swayze as Molly's banker boyfriend Sam Wheat, Moore's character horrifically witnesses her beau being brutally attacked and killed by a mugger on the streets of Manhattan, but Sam doesn't go far — his ghost remains behind and, with the help of psychic Oda Mae Brown (a standout Whoopi Goldberg), aims to interact with Molly from beyond the grave.
"Ghost" was a huge hit for Moore and co., both commercially and critically. One of the best '90s movies, the Jerry Zucker-directed melodrama grossed over $505 million at the box office and was the highest-grossing film of 1990. (And, in a true marker of the times, the film was also the most rented video cassette of 1991.) It earned five Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, and won two: for Goldberg's supporting turn and for screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin's script. Moore received her first of four Golden Globe nominations for her radiant performance.
Though there are many memorable scenes in "Ghost," the steamy love scene between Moore and Swayze — famously set at a pottery wheel, while the Righteous Brothers croon "Unchained Melody" over a jukebox — has become one of the most iconic and oft-parodied moments in cinema history. And the movie as a whole remains an enduring favorite: "Ghost" has an approval rating of 76% on Rotten Tomatoes, with a critical consensus that reads: "'Ghost' offers viewers a poignant romance while blending elements of comedy, horror, and mystery, all adding up to one of the more enduringly watchable hits of its era."
As for streaming "Ghost," you can revisit the Demi Moore and Patrick Swayze-led romance on Peacock, as the Valentine's-ready title joined the streaming service on Feb. 1. As of press time, there's a pretty major subscription deal going on over at Peacock: you can get an annual Premium plan for only $29.99 rather than the usual $79.99. Otherwise, you can subscribe to the platform for $7.99 per month for the ad-supported Premium option or $13.99 for the commercial-free Premium Plus plan. And if you're still not sure if you should sign up, check out everything new on Peacock in February.
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