Can you imagine Fifty Shades of Grey without Jamie Dornan or Ironman 2 without Scarlett Johansson? Because it would have happened if these celebrities didn’t decide to turn down the offers first. Here is a list of ten celebrities who missed out on some major movie roles that they probably regret now.
1. Emily Blunt for Ironman 2
Emily Blunt was offered the role of Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow in Ironman 2 but the actress had been doing Gulliver’s Travels at the time and had already been signed on for The Devil wears Prada so she dropped the role.
Fortunately, Scarlett Johannsson got the role and later turned MCU upside down by her magnificent performance as Black Widow. Three months after Blunt declined the role of Natasha, she got the lead role in the Edge of Tomorrow alongside Tom Cruise so I guess everything worked out for the best.
2. Emma Watson for La La Land
Emma Watson was asked to join the cast of the Oscar-nominated film La La Land as Mia before it went to Emma Stone. Watson however had already said yes to The Beauty and the Beast so she had the turndown La La Land.
During an interview, Watson explained “[Beauty and the Beast] wasn’t a movie I could just sort of walk into.” “I knew I had horseback riding, dancing, and three months of singing ahead of me, and I knew I needed to be in London to do it properly. This was not a film that I could only walk into. I knew I had to get the job done and be where I needed to be. So, you know, it just didn’t work out in terms of scheduling conflicts.”
3. Gwyneth Paltrow for Titanic
Titanic would not have been the blockbuster film it is today without Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet as Jack and Rose. But it appears that the part of Rose was first offered to Gwyneth Paltrow and she turned it down.
In a talk with Howard Stern, Paltrow revealed that she does regret not taking the role of Rose but tries not to think about it too much. “I look back on my decisions and wonder, ‘Why the hell did I say yes to that? And no to that?’ And you know, you take a step back and say to yourself: There’s a common lesson here. What is the point of clinging to roles?”
4. Charlie Hunnam for Fifty Shades of Grey
Charlie Hunnam was first asked to portray the role of Christian Grey in the Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy alongside Dakota Johnson but he declined due to scheduling differences and the role went to Jamie Dornan instead.
The actor later explained that he was in the middle of wrapping up Crimson Peak and then beginning another series called Sons of Anarchy so it got pretty hectic for him. When Sam Taylor-Johnson offered him the role he got so nervous that he felt like he was having a panic attack and it was too much for him.
5. Hugh Jackman for Casino Royale
Possibly, Hugh Jackman could’ve been the face we would be seeing in the upcoming 007 film No Time to Die instead of Daniel Craig if the X-Men star would have accepted the role of James Bond in Casino Royale.
Jackman was about to do his second X-Men movie at the time and thought that if he signed the Bond deal then he ‘would not have time to do anything else so he gave up on the role according to Variety
6. Matt Damon for Avatar
Matt Damon has had a history of passing on roles in films that become mega-hits later. During the casting of Avatar, Cameron went to Damon for the role of Jake Sully but the actor turned down the role saying that it was clashing with the schedule of his film The Bourne Ultimatum.
Avatar ended up becoming one of the highest-grossing movies of all time worldwide which left Damon with a loss of $250 Million since he was offered ten percent of what the movie makes. If only Damon has taken up the role of Sully, he would be doing Avatar 2, 3, 4, and 5 right now.
7. Will Smith for The Matrix
Will Smith was pitched the role of Neo for The Matrix but he turned it down for Wild Wild West. Smith explained that although he was at the top of his career at the time he regrets not taking the role of Neo.
The role then went to Keanu Reeves who turned it into an iconic sci-fi film. Years later, Smith explained that even if he had taken the role for the movie he would have messed it up and even appreciated Reeves for his performance.
8. Sean Connery for The Lord of the Rings
Sean Connery, the first James Bond was offered the role of Gandalf before it went to Ian Mckellen. Peter Jackson went to Connery for the role of Gandalf and even offered him $30 million, plus 15 percent of the box-office takings. Yet, he declined. The film trilogy made $2.981 billion at the global box office.
However, Sean didn’t regret not taking the role, he once revealed “I read the book. I read the script. I saw the movie. I still don’t understand it,” He added “Ian McKellen, I believe, is marvelous in it.”
9. Tom Hanks for Jerry Maguire
Jerry Maguire would not have been the same without Tom Cruise but as it turns out, Cameron Crowe wrote the film script with Tom Hanks on his mind. Hanks however was directing the film That Thing You Do! at the time and declined the offer.
Tom Cruise got the role of Jerry Maguire and won an Oscar nomination for Best Actor and another for Best Picture.
10. Jennifer Connelly for Pretty Woman
Although its hard to believe that there exists a world where Julia Roberts was not the first choice for Vivian Ward, it is the truth. The director Garry Marshall was looking for a more younger actress to play the protagonist among which Jeniffer Connelly was his top choice.
Connelly declined the offer saying that she was too young for the role and so it went to Julia Roberts who turned Edward Lewis’s world upside down by her Charismatic performance.
Stay tuned with Stanford Arts Review for the latest updates.
