Her role in Blade Runner showcased her charisma and physicality, catching the attention of Splash's filmmakers.
Daryl Hannah had been preparing all her life for her role in Splash.
The 1984 romantic comedy that elevated Tom Hanks to stardom had a rocky road to release, but despite its rough beginnings, casting Hannah as the mermaid love interest was a no-brainer.
Speaking on the It Happened in Hollywood podcast, director Ron Howard and producer Brian Grazer stopped by to talk about how the cult classic film came together. There were a handful of actresses who auditioned for the role of Madison -- including Christie Brinkley -- but Hannah outperformed not only the actresses but the trained professionals who were considered as her body double for underwater scenes.
"When I met her, she said, 'I've dreamed of being a mermaid all my life,' " Howard recounted. "[Hannah said,] 'When I was 8 years old, I would literally take a garden hose and go down to the bottom of the pool and draw oxygen through the garden hose so that I could swim and practice.' "
Howard said he thought "maybe that's just a great story," but still decided to cast her in the role. But the actress impressed Howard and Grazer even further once filming began.
"When we went in to just test her out in the mermaid tail in a tank, we also had some women who do this professionally in Florida. They play mermaids in these underwater shows at aquariums, and Daryl blew them all away," Howard continued. "I mean, it was like, we couldn't even use a double. She so embodied in the most organic, natural way, a real character, underwater, that it was just -- [it] was mesmerizing to watch."
It seemed that all of Hannah's years as a child playing mermaids paid off, as Howard and Grazer decided not to hire a stunt double for her.
"She could swim," he said. "She could swim fast, and keep in mind, she couldn't have a mask on under there. So she's, you know, opening her eyes underwater, being guided around. I mean, the whole underwater filming was a trip."
The film sees Hanks' character, Allen Bauer, fall in love with Hannah's character, not knowing she's secretly a mermaid. Once it was released, it landed an Academy Award nomination for best original screenplay and was the tenth-highest grossing film of the year.
Though Hannah was capable of outperforming even the best-trained mermaids who had auditioned, it wasn't just her swimming skills that made her a standout for the role. Prior to landing Splash, Hannah appeared as the pleasure android Pris in the 1982 science fiction film Blade Runner, where she had caught the eye of many.
"Blade Runner had come out, and Daryl Hannah was riveting to watch in that movie," Howard said. "She played a robot, you know, and did this acrobatic stuff, and she was so charismatic."