- - Jane Seymour Shocked by the Sleeper Success of “Somewhere in Time” After It ‘Got the Worst Reviews of All Time’ (Exclusive)

Meredith Wilshere, Scott HuverJanuary 18, 2026 at 2:30 AM

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Jane Seymour -

Although Somewhere in Time is now a cult classic, Jane Seymour says it almost wasn't released

Seymour talks to PEOPLE about the 1980 American romantic fantasy at the AARP Movies for Grownups Awards

She starred in the movie alongside Christopher Reeve

Jane Seymour says Somewhere in Time almost wasn’t released, and when it was, it “got the worst reviews of all time" — but still managed to become a cult classic.

The 74-year-old actress, who starred in the 1980 romantic fantasy alongside Christopher Reeve, admits she was shocked by the movie's lasting success.

“The movie was almost not put out. Universal did not publicize it [at] all. There was an actor's strike, so Chris and I weren't allowed to even promote it. And then it got the worst reviews of all time,” Seymour tells PEOPLE the AARP Movies for Grownups Awards on Jan. 10.

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Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour in 'Somewhere in Time'

While the movie didn't immediately land with audiences in America, Seymour says it grew a following overseas.

"Then the next thing I knew, a friend of mine in Hong Kong said, 'You have no idea. Your movie is the number one movie in Hong Kong. People watch it 20 times,'" she shares. "And I went to Hong Kong and was mobbed. Mobbed. I thought I was one of the Beatles."

Seymour recalls having "10 armed guards" around her while “people were crushing me.”

"I was like, 'What? That movie that nobody wanted to see?'" she recalls. "And it just got bigger and bigger."

After they finished filming the movie, Seymour says she and Reeve “promised" each other that they would return to Mackinac Island, Mich., where the movie was filmed.

“The next thing we knew, the fans, who finally found Somewhere in Time, decided to start an organization called the International Network of Somewhere in Time Enthusiasts, called INSITE," she shares, noting that the group even made "amazing magazines" about the film.

"And Chris went back there and said, ‘You're not going to believe what's going on. People are coming here. They're dressing up like us. They're playing the roles. They're doing all of that,'" she says.

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Jane Seymour

Eventually, Seymour "went and saw it" for herself.

“They have a weekend every year at the Grand Hotel. And my kids have been with me, and even they love it," she tells PEOPLE. "It's amazing. Extraordinary. The fan base for Somewhere in Time is huge.”Along with Seymour and Reeve, Somewhere in Time starred Christopher Plummer and Teresa Wright. The film followed Reeve's character, a time-traveling playwright, who fell in love with a historical actress, played by Seymour.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”