The stars of “Showgirls” share juicy tidbits and reflect on the behind-the-scenes campy cult fave exclusively to TabloidProdigy.com. Celebrating its 15th anniversary with a glitzy Blu-ray DVD release today, the once panned box office turkey finally gets treated like the ‘Goddess’ it truly is.

CASTING: Coming off the heels of their “Basic Instinct” success, a chance to work with director Paul Verhoeven on a Joe Eszterhas screenplay seemed like a formulaic blockbuster. As it turns out, the duo, wasn’t too big to fail.

GREG TRAVIS (played Phil Newkirk, assistant to the Stardust’s entertainment director): I was auditioning, like everyone else, and Johanna Ray (casting director) called me in and Paul (Verhoeven) was there when I read. I had seen his earlier films and we were laughing about some of his other stuff like “The Fourth Man” were popular back in the ‘80s. I gave him something right for the character, for the role. I remember Craig Watson was also there for the same part. In the ‘80s, he had quite a few lead roles in movies. A lot bigger people than I was auditioned. At the time, I was known as a stand-up comedian–I opened for Cher, Tom Jones and headlined all the improvs. So I guess I had the comedic touch that he was looking for.

ALAN RACHINS (Stardust’s producer of its marquee show “Goddess”): I read the script prior to going in, and it was a Joe Eszterhas script, which had a huge cache: Paul Verhoeven, Joe Eszterhas and MGM. I liked the part. I auditioned for it, and Paul (Verhoeven) ran the camera–and that’s pretty unusual. And I felt relatively secure about it, it seemed to be a good fit.

RENA RIFFEL (Cheetah club stripper): I just got my first lead in a movie, called “Art Deco Detective,” directed by Philippe Mora–he did great movies from the ‘80s. I got the lead part and they told me I beat out Anna Nicole Smith, so I thought I was on my way.  And this was in ‘93 or ‘94. At the time I didn’t know if she was a good actress or not, she’s interesting to watch but she was a big GUESS model at the time. I don’t know, but I guess they auditioned her and uh, yah….

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An underground cult fave since it first hit theaters in 1995, Showgirls–now 15 years old–has ceremoniously entered the canon of campy film classics. It’s a recycled tale–a young, budding newcomer hungry for the spotlight, clashes with an aging diva, but throw in gratuitous nudity, flashy dance numbers, wicked bitchery and the kind of dialogue that was seemingly penned in a drag show dressing room, and you’ve got cinema’s greatest accidental comedy.

And tomorrow, Showgirls gets the Blu-ray treatment in a 15th anniversary Sinsational Edition DVD release.

Let’s take a look at where the cast is now:

Elizabeth Berkley
Saved by the Bell alum Elizabeth Berkley went from ‘90s teen sitcom darling to Hollywood punch line after her nipple-laden performance as Nomi Malone–a troubled stripper hungry for hamburgers and Vegas’ glitzy big stage. For Elizabeth, the aftermath of headlining the panned camp juggernaut led to a “career rehabilitation” with small roles in hits First Wives Club and Any Given Sunday. Later, starring roles in Lifetime movies, Broadway, and gigs on TV like host of Bravo’s Step it Up and Dance, The L Word, and a popular run on CSI: Miami peppered her resume in a career resurgence. Elizabeth recently reunited with Saved by the Bell cast members in a big People magazine feature.

Kyle MacLachlan
Kyle MacLachlan played Zack Carey, the Stardust’s entertainment director and boyfriend-turned-jerk to Cristal Connors (Gina Gershon)–and later–Nomi Malone (Elizabeth Berkley). Various notable TV gigs followed, including a recurring role as Dr. Trey MacDougal on Sex and the City. Presently he can be seen as House husband Orson Hodge on ABC’s Desperate Housewives.

Gina Gershon
Cristal Connors, played by Gina Gershon, is the reigning show diva who lusts for Nomi but later sees her as a younger rival.  Bisexual Cristal, followed by roles like a butch lesbian in Bound and a bisexual rocker in Prey for Rock & Roll, solidified Gershon as a gay icon. She recently starred in the short-lived revival of Bye Bye Birdie on Broadway. Gershon has expressed interest in a Broadway musical adaptation of Showgirls.

Gina Ravera
Gina Ravera played Molly Abrams–the seamstress for Goddess–and Nomi Malone’s (Elizabeth Berkley) only friend. As the lone character with a good head on her shoulders, she’s ultimately met with a cringe-worthy rape scene in the end. Ravera went on to movies like Soul Food and The Great Debaters, and spots as a regular on TNT’s The Closer and ER.

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Continuing on with our celebration of the 10 Things I Hate About You DVD 10-year anniversary, we have a special submission from Amy T. on the greatest teen flick dance scenes of all time.

At the top spot, Julia Stiles pays a nod to Biggie with a drunky-drunk table dance in 10 Things I Hate About You:

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Some great minds added laugh tracks, applause and other fab audience reactions to scenes from “Showgirls,” solidifying the shitastic epic as what it was truly meant to be–a comedy.

Okay, sooooo…it’s no secret: “Showgirls” is my favorite movie. Here’s a lolz sweded version of the infamous Spago scene from the movie. These two fellas are spot-on with uncanny accuracy. Every nuance is captured.

Nothing goes better together like a good fight and nudity.  Let’s take a look at the top 10 naked fight scenes of all time. And by naked, I mean I’m not talking obstructed or implied nudity here– I’m talking about bare boobs, butt cracks and more combined with awesome knife wielding, punch throwing and ass kicking action-packed bloody and raw moments.

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If you couldn’t tell by now, “Showgirls” is my favorite movie of all
time. Elizabeth Berkley’s character in the film, Nomi Malone, is
pissed-off from start to finish, and her interaction with other characters
is fraught with excessive and unecessary responses. Watch how she over-pours the ketchup and then tosses her fries in the air. It’s very lolz
worthy. This is truly a cinematic triumph of writing and directing.