
**Kevin Costner Once Offered Princess Diana a Role in The Bodyguard Sequel**
*Published: September 22, 2025, 3:19 p.m. ET*
RadarOnline.com can reveal that Hollywood actor Kevin Costner, 70, once approached the late Princess Diana about making a move into acting by offering her a major breakthrough role in a sequel to *The Bodyguard*.
### A Serious Offer
Diana’s former butler, Paul Burrell, shares in his new autobiography *The Royal Insider* that he “put through” Costner’s call to the Princess, who found the conversation quite amusing.
Burrell recalls:
“I put the call from Mr. Costner through to her in the sitting room and heard fits of giggles with her saying, ‘But I can’t sing! What would I be expected to do? I’m not sure but yes, OK, send it and I promise I will have a look.’”
He explains that Diana was offered the lead role in a follow-up to the smash hit *The Bodyguard*, which originally starred Whitney Houston. In the sequel, she would play a princess, and Costner would be her bodyguard who saves her life. Costner promised the project would be tastefully done and assured Diana he would look after her.
Diana chuckled about the offer, saying, “He was so charming but he cannot be serious.” However, Burrell confirms that Costner was extremely serious, and the script for *The Bodyguard II* did indeed arrive.
Although it is unclear if Diana ever read the script, she was flattered by the offer but politely declined, saying, “It is entirely impossible.”
### The Bodyguard Sequel That Never Was
Kevin Costner first spoke publicly about the canceled sequel in 2012. He revealed that the plot would have focused on him protecting Diana’s character from stalkers and paparazzi, with their relationship eventually turning romantic.
Costner mentioned that Diana was initially enthusiastic about the film, telling him, “My life’s about to change.” The two even agreed on filming a kissing scene.
*The Bodyguard* was one of the highest-grossing films of the early 1990s, earning over $400 million worldwide. The soundtrack, featuring Whitney Houston’s iconic rendition of Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You,” sold more than 42 million copies—a world record.
In the original movie, Houston played a singer, a role originally written for Diana Ross. Houston’s performance and the film’s success catapulted her to becoming one of the highest-paid actors of the mid-1990s.
### The Origin of the Sequel Idea
The idea for the sequel reportedly came during a trip to China, which included Diana, Kevin Costner, Sarah Ferguson (Duchess of York), and Hong Kong restaurant mogul David Tang.
### Aftermath and Fallout
In recent years, Costner has revealed that his relationship with the Royal Family deteriorated following Diana’s death in 1997. Speaking on *The Howard Stern Show*, he shared that about a year after her passing, news leaked that he was preparing the sequel with Diana.
“The Royal Family kind of turned on me a little bit,” Costner said. “And it got actually kind of ugly. And I let it go for a while. It just got uglier and uglier.”
—
Princess Diana’s brief flirtation with Hollywood remains one of the intriguing “what ifs” of her remarkable life. Though she never pursued an acting career, this unexpected connection with Kevin Costner and *The Bodyguard* sequel adds a fascinating chapter to her legacy.
https://radaronline.com/p/princess-diana-offered-bodyguard-sequel-role-kevin-costner/