Craziest Reasons Actors Were Turned Down For A Role
On the outside, show business looks like a lucrative and financially rewarding business. You come in, read a few lines, have a few laughs with the crew, and get paid millions of dollars. People around the world adore you and hang on your every word. Companies send you all sorts of gifts and products just because you’re famous.
But the truth is, it’s not as easy as you might think. Actors have to go through excruciating interviews and constant auditions, and they end up being rejected for the smallest and most trivial reasons. What kind of reasons, you ask? Well, you’ll have to read the article to find out. But we’re telling you that some of these reasons actors were turned down are straight-up bonkers.
Regé-Jean Page
Hollywood today isn’t what it used to be. Nowadays they try to be more conscious of politically correct issues, you think you wouldn’t hear about someone being turned down for the same reason Regé-Jean Page did. Apparently, when he was auditioning for the role of Superman’s grandfather, one of the executives in charge of the casting process refused to accept him.
The reason? Allegedly he said that “Superman could not have a Black grandfather.” We think that if Superman is an alien to start with, the possibility of a Black grandfather could be rationalized. It seems Hollywood has even more progress to take care of.
Gillian Anderson
If there’s one thing you should do as a budding actor, it’s paying attention to the small print in contracts. In fact, even if you’re a seasoned actor you should always read every contract before you sign it. Otherwise you might find out that the people who hired you put you under weird restrictions that prevent you from acting in other movies.
When Gillian Anderson was still working in The X-Files, she found out that Fox put an unusual clause in her contract. It states that she’s not allowed to play other FBI detectives while working for the show. This cost Anderson a few good roles at the time. We have to admit it’s one of the weirdest studio roles we’ve heard of.
Sheryl Lee Ralph
Sometimes, producers have the weirdest reasons to not pick a certain actor for a role. For example, he might have a mole on his face that ruins the character’s personality. They may even reject someone based on their body type. In many cases, one can argue that directors can be very discriminatory when casting for their shows.
Sheryl Lee Ralph was a victim of a similar case. But unlike in other cases, she was rejected for not being Black enough. We don’t really know what that means but we do know that it’s something you shouldn’t say to anyone. One day Black people are discriminated against for being too dark, the next they’re not dark enough.
Andrew Garfield
Fantasy movies that involve royalty tend to cast kings and queens that have an above-average appearance. In reality these people didn’t look any better than your average peasant working the field. In fact, they looked worse, at least a peasant does some physical work and doesn’t have children with close family members.
When Andrew Garfield was auditioning for the role of Prince Caspian in The Chronicles of Narnia he was rejected. His agent told him that it was because the director didn’t think he was handsome enough. We have to admit Ben Barnes is pretty darn handsome, but the role could’ve easily gone to Garfield.
Sean Young
Acting can be risky business. Sometimes an accident can cause an actor to lose his part in a movie. If you get injured the show must go on, with or without you. Most of the time the director and crew aren’t able to wait for you to recover and tough decisions have to be made.
That’s exactly what happened to Sean Young, she was originally supposed to play Catwoman in the 1989’s Batman movie. But when practicing for a stunt something went wrong and she ended up breaking her arm. Unable to play the role, the director decided to replace her with Kim Basinger. Ironically enough the scene Young was practicing for didn’t even make it to the final cut.
Tom Holland
It’s safe to say that many people disliked Star Wars: The Force Awakens. It received a lot of negative criticism from fans who had a hard time letting go of the old franchise. In reality the movie wasn’t half bad, the droids were great, the actors were talented and the special effects were stunning. John Boyega really did a great job playing a Stormtrooper who defected to the side of the resistance.
But how would you feel if we told you that this role could’ve been played by Tom Holland? Personally, we think he’s too quirky and upbeat of a character to play a serious role like that. That’s also the reason why he was eventually let go, he couldn’t stop laughing during auditions.
Chris Klein
To be a good actor you have to acquire as many skills as possible. The first is obviously acting, but aside from that, the sky’s the limit. A good actor should know how to do anything that’s asked of him, drive a fast car, ride a horse, and even sing. The more skills you have the higher chance you’ve got to get accepted into all kinds of roles.
Chris Klein is a great example of someone who got rejected for lacking the necessary skills. When auditioning to play Sky in Mamma Mia! he was asked to sing. Knowing full well he can’t, Klein decided to give it a shot anyway. Looking at the audition tape that got released afterwards, we’re glad he didn’t get the part.
Robin Williams
We all love the Harry Potter franchise, the movies were pretty great and the series was so impactful that many people are still waiting for their Hogwarts acceptance letter. But getting the right characters was a long and tedious process for the directors. After all, whoever they picked would be the face of one of the most beloved stories in the world.
What if we told you that one of the world’s most loved comedians attempted to get a role in the franchise? Robin Williams was auditioning for the roles of Professor Lupin and Hagrid, but was ultimately turned down. Apparently he wasn’t British enough. Or should we say he was “too American” for their taste. Can you imagine? The funniest and nicest person on the planet could’ve been part of the Harry Potter universe.
Robert Redford
While interviewing for movie parts isn’t unheard of, the questions asked can seem pretty strange, at least compared to a standard nine-to-five job interview. The questions can be a little invasive and uncomfortable at times, but sometimes they have to be in order to determine if the person is suited to play the role.
The perfect actor will embody at least some of the character’s attributes. This is why Robert Redford was rejected from a role for never “striking out with a woman”. This ended up working in the favor of young Dustin Hoffman who was just starting out. It was thanks to this role that he was able to have a successful career in Hollywood.
Johnny Depp
After the infamous defamation trials, there isn’t a soul on this planet that doesn’t know who Johnny Depp is. No matter what role he plays, he manages to bring his own charm into it. This is why he has such a big roster of characters, from Edward Scissorhands to Captain Jack Sparrow.
In fact, the only genre Depp didn’t play in was probably horror (aside from his debut on A Nightmare on Elm Street). This might explain why the only person who called Depp “A Lightweight Actor” was Bret Easton Ellis, the author of American Psycho. We have to agree that Depp couldn’t have pulled off a performance like that.
O.J. Simpson
These days everybody knows O.J. Simpson is capable of murder. But did you know that during the late 1900s he was also a popular actor? He always played cheerful likable and goofy characters, like the role he had in the film Naked Gun. But it was also the reason why he wasn’t cast in The Terminator movies.
When Orion pictures pitched Simpson for the role of the murderous robot, the director had to decline. According to him, Simpson’s personality was too cheerful and it was hard to picture him as a murderer. Ironically just a few years later he was tried for the murder of his wife and her lover. Although he wasn’t found guilty many still believe he did it.
Julianne Moore
Many times, casting directors will decide if an actor is suited to play a part based on their physical appearance. Like it or not, how a person looks is very important when making a movie. So it’s not surprising that many actors get rejected for not being pretty, tall, or even fat enough. But if the budget allows it, makeup artists will resort to special effects to make the actors look like their characters.
But it’s much easier to find someone who looks the part naturally. In the movie Can You Ever Forgive Me? director Nicole Holofcener was looking for someone on the heavier side to play Lee Israel. So when Julianne Moore suggested wearing a fat suit and fake nose, Holofcener politely declined.
Nicole Kidman
Talent is everything in Hollywood, you can be forgiven if you don’t possess certain skills or look the part. If you’re well-established, people will go the extra mile to cast you. This is why it’s so hard to get a break into show business, nobody wants to take the risk and hire an unknown actor that may or may not be the reason for the movie’s failure.
Nicole Kidman shared her frustration during her years as an unknown actor. She really wanted to play Julia Roberts’s part in Notting Hill. But since she was only starting out she lacked celebrity status to get it.
Alden Ehrenreich
Despite what everybody says, in show business size does matter. In fact, how you look on the outside is vastly more important than how you look on the inside. Hollywood can and will judge a book by its cover. And in some cases, being an inch too short is what will make or break your chance at a decent role.
The saddest part is that there’s nothing you can do about it. There are a lot of things you can change about yourself but height isn’t one of them. Imagine Alden Ehrenreich’s disappointment that he lost out on the role of Dan Humphrey in Gossip Girl, despite being the director’s first choice. The producers decided he was too short and he had to be replaced.
Mark Webber
The thing that people want to see more than anything on the TV is good-looking people. When was the last time you’ve seen an unattractive actor that wasn’t purposefully altered by makeup for the part? If you want to make it in Hollywood you better look fabulous. That’s a sad reality of the industry.
Some end up like poor Mark Webber who was fired in the middle of a show because of his looks. Now, Webber is by no means an unattractive person, but it just proves that some producers have a high standard when it comes to being pretty.
Mindy Kaling
We can’t imagine how soul-crushing it must be to be offered your own show only to be asked to audition for your part. Mindy Kaling is an actress who gained traction after playing the role of Kelly Kapoor in the hit show The Office. One day she was offered her own sketch comedy show, which we imagine was a dream come true.
But when she accepted the offer it was revealed that she would have to audition for the role of herself. As it turns out they didn’t like her as much as she thought, a decision was made and she was deemed not “attractive or funny enough” to play her own part.
Alicia Silverstone
Sometimes, being too pretty can be a disadvantage. Some roles require the character to be somewhat humble and the producer might think that your looks will impact your personality. In other words, a beautiful person will be less humble since they’re constantly told how good they look, while a less attractive person wouldn’t be as arrogant.
One of the co-producers of the show My So-Called Life really liked Alicia Silverstone and wanted her to play the sensitive and kind Angela Chase. But executive producer Marshall Herskovitz said that Silverstone was too attractive and wouldn’t be able to embody a character like Angela Chase.
Mädchen Amick
Being a mother is tough, it requires around-the-clock attentiveness and constant caring for an infant. This is especially true during the first few months after birth. That’s why we imagine a mother as a mature and responsible adult who knows what they’re doing. Most TV moms tend to be a certain age for this reason.
Mädchen Amick was supposed to play the role of Lorelai on Gilmore Girls, and she got pretty far in the screening process. But eventually, she was rejected because “she didn’t seem old enough to be a mother”. Many would take it as a compliment, but in this case, it ruined her chances at a great gig.
Jenna Fischer
If you’ve watched Man with a Plan, a sitcom about Matt LeBlanc trying to parent his kids after his wife goes back to work, you might’ve noticed that Jenna Fischer isn’t there. She was originally supposed to be playing Andi Burns, the main character’s wife. But after the pilot aired the network thought that the chemistry between Fischer and LeBlanc was lacking.
So before the show was even previewed they recast Fischer and eventually replaced her with Liza Snyder. The better and more comfortable two actors feel with each other the better they can perform, though we’re sure it was an awkward situation for Fischer.
Marc Maron
It’s every comedian’s dream to be part of the Saturday Night Live cast. The show has been running successfully for 47 seasons, airing its first episode on October 11, 1975. But getting into this exclusive club is no easy task and people get rejected for the weirdest reasons. One potential cast member shared the reason he thinks he never made it on the show.
Marc Maron thinks that the reason they didn’t hire him was over a piece of candy he took from Lorne Michaels’ desk. To be fair he was also high at the time which might’ve been the real reason he was turned down. We can’t know for certain, but we do know that showing up to an interview high usually doesn’t help.
Allison Hannigan’s Kids
It’s always weird to see babies being cast in shows and movies. What’s the screening process like? All they have to do is sit quietly and be cute, that’s what many of them do anyway. So when you hear a story about a baby who wasn’t cast in a certain movie, you have to ask yourself why.
Well as it turns out the main criteria for a baby is to look like an infant. It can seem inauthentic if the child is too old. In the hit show How I Met Your Mother, production was looking for someone to play Lily Aldrin’s second baby. Unfortunately, actress Alyson Hannigan’s daughters were too old for the part.
Christ Pratt
Chris Pratt’s journey to landing the role of Scott Hatteberg in Moneyball was far from straightforward. Initially, he faced a blunt and disheartening critique: he was told he was “too fat” for the part. This feedback, steeped in the harsh realities of Hollywood’s physical demands, propelled Pratt into a rigorous regime of crash dieting and other intense measures to lose weight.
Despite the odds and the potentially negative impact on his health, Pratt’s unwavering determination shone through. His efforts were ultimately rewarded when he succeeded in transforming his physique and secured the role. This episode in Pratt’s career underscores not only his resilience but also the demanding and often unrealistic expectations of the film industry.
Nicolas Cage
Even the man of a thousand movies gets rejected every once in a while. With dozens upon dozens of acting credits under his belt, it almost feels like there’s no role Cage would turn down. Believe it or not, some productions can’t afford the lucrative star. Even if he was considered for a role, if the company can’t pay his salary requirements it’s a no-go.
Evidently, that’s why he was “rejected” from the role of John Bender in The Breakfast Club. We think it’s for the better. With all the memes involving Cage, we feel like the movie would’ve been taken less seriously if he was in it.
Freddie Prinze Jr.
If you grew up with the early-2000s Spider-Man trilogy, you know how hard it is to see anyone but Tobey Maguire play our favorite Marvel hero. But he wasn’t the network’s first choice, they also interviewed Freddie Prinze Jr. It’s wild to see just how close some actors came to securing a role that big.
As we know, Prinze Jr. didn’t get the role and the reason why is hilarious. When he was talking to the interviewers, they asked him to explain why he loves Spider-Man. Prinze went on an impressive 25-minute speech talking about it. However only as he was leaving the interview that he realized he wasn’t talking about Spider-Man, but the alien symbiote Venom.
Brenda Song
Hollywood has been making steps towards having diversity in its films. But sometimes trying to diversify your cast can backfire. Brenda Song is one of the biggest Asian-American actresses out there, best known for her roles in The Suit Life of Zack and Cody and The Suite Life on Deck. Unfortunately, she didn’t have a chance to get a role in the film Crazy Rich Asians because she wasn’t “Asian enough”.
It feels like the network was looking for a specific Asian look, and Song didn’t fit it, despite her parents coming from Thailand. We’re sure this was a harsh blow for Song, who is more than talented enough for any part in the movie.
Stuart Townsend
If you’re a big Lord Of The Rings fan, you know it’s impossible to imagine the franchise without the original cast members. Each one of them managed to perfectly embody the characters from the books and bring them to life on the big screen. But finding the right people wasn’t easy and in some cases, people were replaced mere days before shooting.
Stuart Townsend was training for the role of Aragorn for weeks, and just as they were about to start principal photography, he got the news that they replaced him with Viggo Mortensen. They said it was because he looked too young, which is funny considering everybody on the show underwent dramatic makeup changes.
Ryan Gosling
It’s always a good idea to show up looking presentable when coming to a job interview, especially in a competitive market like acting where the smallest detail can make the casting directors reject you. We’ve heard stories of people who didn’t get the part simply because they weren’t good-looking or in shape. The roster of reasons for a network to not accept an actor is vast and sometimes it feels like it’s all up to luck.
Ryan Gosling came to the interview of The Lovely Bones chubby and bearded, which isn’t how the director envisioned his character. So instead they went with Mark Walberg, who we assume showed up looking more presentable than Gosling. Kind of ironic when you consider just how handsome Ryan Gosling is!
Scarlett Johansson
With a plethora of impressive roles under her belt, Scarlett Johansson has proven to the world she’s more than just a pretty face. But the road there wasn’t easy and many saw her for the looks and not the talent. You might think that being good-looking makes it easier to get roles, but even beautiful people get rejected from time to time.
When auditioning for the movie The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, the director thought that Johansson was “too sexy”. He was worried people would only want to see her naked and won’t focus on the character at all. He ended up casting Rooney Mara who ended up being a great choice. She was so dedicated to the role she even went as far as to pierce her body to fit the character.
Chris Pine
These days Chris Pine’s acting career is going great. He was cast in Wonder Woman, Star Trek, and even Spiderman. But his early days weren’t that glamorous, and he had to struggle to find roles to play. In an interview with casting director Patrick Rush, who was in charge of The O.C at the time, he shared why he rejected Pine despite his great audition.
Rush said that it broke his heart but he had to let Pine go because he had a horrible case of acne. We’ve all been teens and know how bad acne can get, so seeing someone get rejected because of it can hurt. Luckily it didn’t stop Pine from becoming one of the greatest actors today.
Maggie Gyllenhaal
Maggie Gyllenhaal, a well-known actress, faced a rather eye-opening and slightly absurd reality in Hollywood at the age of 37. She discovered that, in the eyes of the film industry, she was too old to be cast as the romantic interest of a man who was 55, a striking 18 years her senior. This incident sheds light on a larger, more problematic trend in Hollywood regarding age, particularly when it comes to women. Gyllenhaal opened up about this experience in an interview with The Wrap.
She went through a rollercoaster of emotions, starting with shock at the industry’s blatant ageism, moving to frustration over the unfair standards, and eventually finding humor in the absurdity of the situation.