While You Were Sleeping is a 1995 American romantic comedy film directed by Jon Turteltaub and written by Daniel G. Sullivan and Fredric Lebow. The movie features Sandra Bullock as Lucy, a Chicago Transit Authority token collector, and Bill Pullman as Jack, the brother of a man whose life she saves. Other important cast members include Peter Gallagher as Peter, the man who is saved; Peter Boyle and Glynis Johns as members of Peter's family; and Jack Warden as a long-time family friend and neighbor.

The film was successful both with critics and audiences, making more than $182 million worldwide. Bullock and Pullman received praise for their acting. Bullock also received a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy or Musical.

Plot

Fare token collector Lucy Eleanor Moderatz works for the Chicago Transit Authority at the Randolph/Wabash station. She has feelings for Peter Callaghan, a regular commuter, even though they don’t know each other. On Christmas Day, Lucy helps Peter after thieves push him onto the train tracks. She takes the unconscious Peter to the hospital, where people mistake her for his fiancée.

Peter’s family is surprised to learn he is “engaged” but thanks Lucy for saving him. Lucy stays quiet about the mistake because she feels embarrassed and does not want to upset Peter’s grandmother, Elsie, who has a heart condition. While visiting Peter in the hospital, Lucy tells him about her situation, but Peter’s godfather, Saul, hears her. Saul leaves without speaking to her. Meanwhile, Peter’s girlfriend, Ashley, leaves a message saying she will accept Peter’s proposal.

Lucy spends time with Peter’s family during Christmas, even though she feels uncomfortable. She meets Peter’s younger brother, Jack, who wants to build his own furniture business instead of taking over his father’s estate. At first, Jack suspects Lucy is lying, but she convinces him otherwise.

Saul visits Lucy’s apartment and confronts her about the lies. Lucy explains she feels lonely because her mother died when she was young and her father passed away the year before. Saul decides to keep her secret because the accident brought the family closer, and he believes Lucy meant no harm.

As Lucy spends time with Jack, she begins to care for him. Jack tells his unconscious brother that he feels jealous of something Peter has. Ashley continues to leave messages, saying she is back in town and wants to see Peter.

A misunderstanding makes Jack think Lucy is pregnant. He confronts her at a New Year’s Eve party, causing an argument. After the party, Peter wakes up and does not recognize Lucy. Everyone assumes he has amnesia. Lucy tries to explain the truth, but the family thinks she is lying about being pregnant and ignores her. Saul promises to tell the truth later.

When Jack drives Lucy home, she says things will change now that Peter is awake. She thanks Jack for being a friend, and he apologizes. They say goodbye. The next day, Jack tells his father he wants to build furniture instead of taking over the business.

Instead of explaining the truth, Saul tells Peter he treats women poorly and encourages him to get to know Lucy. When Lucy visits, Peter is impressed. Ashley learns from Peter’s doorman that he is engaged to someone else and is in the hospital. She confronts Peter, but he reminds her they broke up after she rejected his proposal. Peter says he has changed and wants to marry Lucy.

Lucy finds out Saul never told the family the truth and returns to the hospital to explain. Before she can, Peter proposes again, and Lucy accepts. Jack gives her a snow globe as a gift. Lucy asks Jack if he can give her a reason not to marry Peter, but he cannot.

The wedding is planned for the next day. During the ceremony, Lucy says, “I object,” and Jack agrees. She confesses she loves Jack and explains how she feels happy with the Callaghans. Ashley arrives and tries to stop the wedding, but her husband also objects. As everyone argues, Lucy leaves unnoticed.

Later, while Lucy is at work, Jack places an engagement ring in her booth’s token tray. He proposes to her in front of most of the Callaghans. Lucy and Jack marry and take a CTA train for their honeymoon. They travel to Florence, Italy, fulfilling Lucy’s dream. Peter asks when she fell in love with Jack, and she replies, “It was while you were sleeping.”

Cast

• Sandra Bullock as Lucy Eleanor Moderatz, a lonely transportation worker
• Bill Pullman as Jack Callaghan, a carpenter with messy but charming appearance
• Peter Gallagher as Peter Callaghan, who is wealthy, attractive, and easily tricked
• Peter Boyle as Ox Callaghan, the leader of the Callaghan furniture business who often tells jokes
• Glynis Johns as Elsie, the grandmother who sometimes believes strange things
• Micole Mercurio as Midge Callaghan, a mother who is very caring and full of emotion
• Jack Warden as Saul Tuttle, Peter's godfather and neighbor to the Callaghan family
• Jason Bernard as Jerry Wallace, Lucy's boss who uses dry humor
• Michael Rispoli as Joe Fusco Jr., Lucy's neighbor who causes trouble but is not harmful and has feelings for her that are not returned
• Ally Walker as Ashley Bartlett Bacon, the sarcastic and shallow actual fiancée of Peter
• Monica Keena as Mary Callaghan, the kind younger sister of Peter and Jack

Production

Demi Moore and Julia Roberts were both offered the role of Lucy Moderatz but refused it.

After Disney's Hollywood Pictures bought the script in 1994, it had trouble finding actors who wanted to take the role. Meg Ryan was one of the first to refuse, as the character Lucy was originally planned to be the one who falls into a coma.

The original screenplay was called Coma Guy, but the title changed soon after Caravan Pictures acquired the script. The story was first set in New York City, but because of budget limits, the setting was changed to Chicago, where the movie was filmed on location. Filming happened from October 8 to December 14, 1994.

Bill Pullman reportedly wanted to leave the film after a table read that producer John Glickman described as "the worst table read of all time," but his agent told him he could not leave another project.

Reception

The film earned a total of $182,057,016 worldwide, compared to an estimated budget of $17,000,000. It made $9,288,915 during its opening weekend on April 21–23, 1995, outperforming the movie Bad Boys. It ranked as the thirteenth highest-grossing film in the United States in 1995.

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 81% based on 62 reviews, with an average score of 6.50 out of 10. The site’s critical consensus states, "While You Were Sleeping uses familiar elements, it is put together with skill and features a charming performance by Sandra Bullock, giving formula a good name." On Metacritic, the film received a weighted average score of 67 out of 100, based on reviews from 20 critics. Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film an A grade on a scale from A to F.

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 3 stars out of 4, writing: "It is a feel-good film, warm and good-hearted, and as it approached its happy ending, I was still surprised by how much I was enjoying it."

Accolades

Bullock was chosen for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical Movie. The film was selected by the American Film Institute in 2002 for a list called AFI's 100 Years…100 Passions. Bullock was also nominated for Best Female Performance and Most Desirable Female at the 1996 MTV Movie Awards.