Heaven Can Wait (1943)

Heaven Can Wait is a 1978 American fantasy-comedy film co-directed by Warren Beatty and Buck Henry which opens with the central story line of Joe Pendleton (played by Warren Beatty).

Directed by Warren Beatty, Buck Henry. With Warren Beatty, James Mason, Julie Christie, Jack Warden. A Los Angeles Rams quarterback, accidentally taken away from his body by an overanxious angel before he was meant to die, returns to life in the body of a recently murdered millionaire.

Heaven Can Wait is a romantic fantasy about Joe Pendleton (Warren Beatty), a Los Angeles Rams quarterback who is accidentally summoned to Heaven.

Directed by Ernst Lubitsch. With Gene Tierney, Don Ameche, Charles Coburn, Marjorie Main. An old roué arrives in Hades to review his life with Satan, who will rule on his eligibility to enter the Underworld.

In this film, Warren Beatty plays pro-football-player Joe Pendleton, who is whisked to Heaven before his due date by over-eager celestial escort Buck Henry.

Amazon.com: Heaven Can Wait: Warren Beatty, Julie Christie, James Mason, Jack Warden, Charles Grodin, Dyan Cannon, Buck Henry, Vincent Gardenia, Joseph Maher, Hamilton Camp, Arthur Malet, Stephanie Faracy, Jeannie Linero, Harry D.K. Wong, George J. Manos, Larry Block, Frank Campanella, Bill Sorrells, R.G. Armstrong: Movies & TV

A great poet once wrote how sad it is when an athlete dies young. There is possibly something sadder: When he doesn't die at all, and is whisked off to heaven through a misunderstanding. That was the premise of "Here Comes Mr. Jordan" -- a 1941 comedy starring Robert Montgomery as a boxer who suddenly found himself on Cloud Nine with the mysterious Mr. Jordan (Claude Rains). And the idea holds up surprisingly well in "Heaven Can Wait," Warren Beatty's new remake, which somehow manages to combine the sweetness and innocence of the original with a satirical bite all its own.