The Stud (film)


The Stud is a 1978 British film directed by Quentin Masters and starring Joan Collins and Oliver Tobias. It is based on the 1969 novel of the same name by Collins' younger sister Jackie Collins.
Joan had asked her sister Jackie for the film rights for free and Jackie agreed whilst contributing to the screenplay. Joan met producer Brent Walker at the Cannes Film festival in 1977. He became excited by the project as it was proposed as a British alternative to Saturday Night Fever. Both Joan Collins' husband, Ron Kass, and Jackie Collins' husband, Oscar Lerhman, also acted as producers on the project.

Plot

Fontaine Khaled is the London wife of a wealthy Arab businessman. She spends his money on her nightclub, Hobo, and partying. She hires a handsome manager, Tony, to run her club, but it is understood that his job security is dependent on his satisfying her nymphomaniac demands. Tony loses interest in Fontaine, as she treats him like a plaything, and turns his attention to her young stepdaughter Alexandra Khaled, who uses him to get back at Fontaine after she discovers a video tape of Fontaine and Tony having sex in the Khaleds' private elevator, essentially cheating on her father. Fontaine then dumps Tony and is divorced by her husband for adultery.

Cast

Box Office

Made for $600,000, the film netted over $20,000,000 internationally. The film was one of the most popular movies of 1978 at the British box office.

Legacy

The film helped to revitalise Joan Collins' career and she credits The Stud and its sequel The Bitch with bringing her to the attention of Aaron Spelling and Esther Shapiro, the producers of Dynasty in 1981. However, Tobias later claimed that his part in the film led to typecasting and ruined his career.

Soundtrack

A successful soundtrack album was released to tie-in with the film. The album contained twenty tracks, including original material penned by Biddu specifically for the film, as well as a number of major British chart hits which were licensed for use in the film. The majority of the tracks were disco flavoured, although some non-disco tracks were also included. The album rose to number 2 on the UK albums chart, kept off the top spot by the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack album. Tracks featured in the film and on the album included: