Henry Winkler Explains Turning Down John Travolta’s Role in Grease

Henry Winkler had a chance to play the iconic Danny Zuko in Grease but he ultimately turned it down.

“This is the reason, in my pathetic mind, I thought to myself, ‘I have now been the Fonz for 10 years,’” Winkler, 78, said, referring to his notable greaser Happy Days character, during a Wednesday, October 9 appearance on Kelly Ripa’s “Let’s Talk Off Camera” podcast. “‘I’m now gonna play him again in the movies? I’m gonna be so typecast. I will never get work again.’”

Winkler starred in Happy Days from 1974 to 1984. His portrayal of Fonzie earned him three Emmy nominations. (Winkler later won his first Emmy in 2018 for Barry.)

Despite finding success as America’s most lovable sitcom greaser, Winkler decided to pass on the project. John Travolta ended up getting cast in the part, which became one of his most notable roles and cemented him as a leading man in Hollywood. Grease premiered in 1978 and ranked No. 2 at the box office right behind Jaws.

“So what happened?” I go home. I relax. I have a V8,” Winkler quipped. “John Travolta goes home and buys a plane.”

Grease went on to spawn a sequel in 1982 starring Maxwell Caulfield and Michelle Pfeiffer. It was also later adapted into a Broadway musical.

While being pigeonholed into certain types of roles was a big fear for Winkler, he admitted that the movie’s musical aspect also played a big role.

“I am not a singer,” he confessed. “Here is my dream: that I could sing like Lewis Capaldi, like Bruno [Mars], like the Boss [Bruce Springsteen], like Brandi Carlile. I dream to sing and take the audience on a journey. I sing and I watch the audience get up and run for the exit.”

Ripa, for her part, did not buy that Winkler couldn’t sing, noting that he’s shared the stage with legendary singers like Neil Diamond before. Winkler explained that he was a big fan of Diamond and was invited to the concert. The actor was surprised when Diamond called him out from the audience and invited him up to perform the 1972 “Song Sung Blue.”

“I’m so dyslexic I only hear the sound of the song, I actually cannot remember the words,” Winkler admitted. “So as he sang it, I sang it in staccato. He would sing, ‘Song sung blue,’ and I went, ‘Song sung blue,’ and I just repeated everything he said, never knowing [the words]. And if he stopped, I would be dead.”