for his job interview. His entire story has apparently been a daydream. Cast Emilio Estevez as John Wisdom Demi Moore as Karen Simmons Tom Skerritt as Lloyd Wisdom Veronica Cartwright as Samantha Wisdom William Allen Young as Agent Williamson Richard Minchenberg as Agent Cooper Ernie Brown as Bill, Motel manager Charlie Sheen as City Burger manager Brenda Medcalf as Girl on bike Production Estevez says the idea for the film "started as just the title. I thought it would be great visually. Just 'Wisdom' across the screen." He wrote the first draft in three weeks. Wisdom became the surname of the lead character. Estevez says Wisdom is "without a place in society... He becomes a criminal because he feels it's the only thing society has left him to do." Estevez added at the film was basically "about two people – their relationship and their discoveries. Those discoveries leave Wisdom not only wanted dead or alive in five states, but also a modern-day folk hero." In October 1985 David Begelman's Gladden Entertainment announced it had signed a deal with the 23 year old Estevez to write, produce and direct Wisdom. Estevez had previously written That Was Then This is Now. Begelman had been in charge of Columbia, and MGM, during which time he gave Walter Hill, Barry Levinson and Richard Benjamin their first directing jobs. Comparisons were made with Orson Welles who was 24 when he wrote, produced and directed Citizen Kane. Estevez said "if they promote Wisdom as this most phenomenal thing that hasn't happened since Orson Welles, I'm going to get hit." "I have a kind of nihilistic point of view", he added. "I'm into making films that are realistic and not fluff. When you deal in reality, you're dealing with a lot of serious problems. We could be sitting here and now and being vaporized by nuclear weapons by accidentally. That's reality... Life does not end happily ever after." The female lead went to Demi Moore who was then Estevez's fiancée. (The two met while making St Elmo's Fire.) "I'm not going to sit here and say it was the most positive professional move for me when I made that picture", she said later. "Of course, doing it was based on my feelings for him and my desire to share it with him. It was very special. I was around from the day Emilio wrote the first page.