Hearts of Fire is a 1987 American musical drama film starring Bob Dylan, Fiona Flanagan (billed only as "Fiona") and Rupert Everett. The film was essentially a vehicle for Dylan based on his success as a rock musician. It received poor reviews, a limited theatrical release, and was later written off by Dylan himself. Cast Fiona Flanagan as Molly McGuire Bob Dylan as Billy Parker Rupert Everett as James Colt Richie Havens as Pepper Ward Julian Glover as Alfred Suzanne Bertish as Anne Ashton Larry Lamb as Jack Rosner Maury Chaykin as Charlie Kelso Lesleh Donaldson as Penny Jeremy Ratchford as Jimbo Mark Rylance as Fizz Ian Dury as Bones Susannah Hoffmann as Blind Woman Origin and filming Originally written by Scott Richardson, the screenplay was rewritten by Basic Instinct writer Joe Eszterhas because Lorimar Productions felt that Richardson was a "baby writer" and not experienced enough to take on the responsibility of a starring vehicle for a rock icon of Dylan's stature. Hearts of Fire is also regarded as the film that "killed Richard Marquand", director of Return of the Jedi, who would die of a stroke later the same year. The film was shot in Canada (Hamilton and Toronto) at the defunct Davenport Works of the Canadian General Electric Company and the United Kingdom (Southerndown and Coney Beach at Porthcawl).Also Cardiff airport substituting for Heathrow The film's concert scenes were shot at the Colston Hall in Bristol, and Camden, North London (UK). Concert scenes filmed at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, Ontario. Release Hearts of Fire did poorly in theaters. It was first released in the UK in 1987 and was pulled from the theaters after approximately two weeks. As a result, the film was released to a very few theaters in the United States for one week only. All plans to set to release the film nationwide, which was planned for release by Lorimar Motion Pictures, but the film was set to limbo, citing the negative reviews of the feature film. Home media In the United States, the film was released directly to video by Warner Home Video in 1990 after a very short theatrical run. The film was re-released on VHS by Warner Brothers on December 6, 1993. The film was released digitally for purchase through iTunes and Vudu. Reviews Variety lamented that it was "unfortunate that the last film of helmer Richard Marquand, who died shortly