Big Movie Roles That Actors Turned Down

[SumoNinja]

I always find it sotra interesting, whenever I see a list of big movie roles that actors turned down. I wonder if hindsight is kicking them in the arse every now and then? But what I find more interesting is how would the movies have played out if some other actor played the role of a character that we know and love. Could you imagine if John Travolta had the part of Forrest Gump or Al Pacino as Han Solo? What about Jack Nicholson as Michael Corleone?

anyways, here is a short list of some of the more interesting ones that I've come across...



Al Pacino - turned down a role in Goodfellas to do Dick Tracy, Han Solo in Star Wars, and Pretty Woman

Sean Connery - turned down the role as Gandalf in Lord of the Rings

Edward Norton - Patrick Bateman from American Psycho

Mel Gibson - Arnold's part in the Terminator, Maximus in Gladiator, and a chance to play as Batman in Tim Burton's series.

Steve McQueen - Dirty Harry, Apocalypse Now, Breakfast at Tiffany's, The Godfather, and Close Encounters of the Third Kind

Leonardo DiCaprio, Will Smith, Tom Cruise, and Nicolas Cage didn't want the role of Neo from The Matrix

Johnny Depp and Tom Cruise didn't want the part of Ferris Bueller, from Ferris Bueller's Day Off

Ralph Macchio turned down the role of Marty McFly from Back to the Future

John Travolta - Forrest in Forrest Gump

Dustin Hoffman, Warren Beatty, and Jack Nicholson turned down the role of Michael Corleone from The Godfather

Mickey Rourke - The Untouchables, Pulp Fiction, and The Silence of The Lambs

Tom Selleck - Indiana Jones

Nic Cage - Lord of The Rings, Shrek, Matrix

Chevy Chase - Forrest Gump, Ghostbusters, American Gigolo, American Beauty, Animal House, Toy Story

 

[Fat Homer]

I'm actually glad Mel Gibson wasn't in any of those movies, and happy to see Travolta turned down the Forrest Gump role, since i couldn't imagine him playing Forrest's role...

 

[Inglorious]

Most of those I can't see working out as well as the actors who did take the roles, but some of them I really want to see now.

 

[woofy]

Nic cage turns down shrek and is now in such gems as the croods. Good move.


Sent from my iPhone using MonsterAquariaNetwork app

 

[Aquanero]

Errol Fylnn was originally slated to play the role of Rhett Butler in Gone With The Wind, the role went Clark Gable.

 

[Warborg]

I heard Harrison Ford turned down the role of Han Solo at first but after repeated pushes he finally accepted it.

 

[ballinouttacntrol]

More recently Will Smith turned down the rule of Django because he wanted them to rewrite it. He had to be the guy who killed that man. That's a quote. He couldn't stand that the co star got to kill Leo DiCaprio's character even though it wasn't necessarily a central part of the story. DOES THIS MAKE SENSE TO ANYONE? Huge arse ego

 

[SumoNinja]

smith probably demanded that they rewrite it to add his son to have a significant part in the movie as well. i'm glad it wasn't smith. wouldn't want django to yell every ten minutes in the movie, "Awe Hell Naw!"

I could be wrong but, I think smith turned down matrix because he wanted to make a cheezy rap song for the soundtrack and they didn't let him. so he accepted his role in wild wild west instead

 

[ballinouttacntrol]

Smith my be the last great black movie star (no idea who he's passing the torch to next) but God he's made some bonehead career decisions

 

[darth pike]

I can hear nothing but "Thou shawll not passssh" in that thick scottish accent now ...