11 Actors Who Declined Million-Dollar Roles That Hurt Their Careers
Imagine if a different actor had played the roles in the classic Hollywood movies you know and love—it’s a fascinating thought of a possibility, right? It may be tough to imagine, but you will be shocked to learn that some stars were not the first choice for filmmakers.
The old adage goes, where one person loses, the other gains. Although a lot of big-name actors won’t even roll out of bed for $1 million, plenty have also passed on projects that would have netted them a lot more.
There are all sorts of reasons actors turn down roles—creative differences, loyalty to an unnamed project at the time, holding firm to their morals, you name it—especially when it comes to big-money roles. A few are still certain in their decisions; however, others likely lamented the opportunity for billions.
Because actors can occasionally get a cut of a film’s profits, however, the success of a given project isn’t always immediately obvious upon release. Hollywood is rife with what could have-beens and lost opportunities.
In Hollywood history, there are tonnes of roles that are worth a million which were almost played by some other actor. The actors talk very openly about the big roles they turned down and what they wished they did instead.
Below are various actors and actresses who were offered roles playing famous people and turned them down.
1. Kate Winslet received international recognition and an Oscar nomination as a result of her performance as Rose in “Titanic”
In fact, Claire Danes was offered the role at first, then she turned it down, saying she felt burned out and uninterested with her recent projects. Apparently neither did the Danes, because while they starred opposite Leo years before in Romeo + Juliet, they wanted nothing more to do with him after Titanic.
2. The writers of the television series Charmed were baffled about what would happen to Prue Halliwell after actress Shannen Doherty quit the project at the conclusion of the third season
Although the actress declined the role, Jennifer Love Hewitt was considered a strong contender. Ultimately, the decision was made to remove Prue Halliwell from the series cast.
3. Matthew Broderick was first chosen for the lead part in “Breaking Bad” by the show’s creators, but the actor declined the offer
Bryan Cranston eventually landed the role and delivered a standout performance. On the other hand, Broderick, despite starring in several films after rejecting the role, struggled to achieve significant success. He now focuses on voice acting for animated characters.
4. Oliver Hudson declined the opportunity to play Jack Pearson in “This is Us” in favor of a 10-day fishing expedition
In the end, Milo Ventimiglia portrayed the lead part and received multiple Emmy nominations for it.
5. Nicolas Cage lost out on getting the role of Aragorn in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy because he stayed at home for a very long time
And then there was the Reunited Kingdom’s first High King, Viggo Mortensen, reeling in fame around the world with his command here. The roles of Nicolas, on the other hand, only inspired angry comments.
6. It’s difficult to think of anyone else except John Travolta playing Vincent Vega
Most people probably don’t realize that the role was initially offered to Michael Madsen who turned it down because of a scheduling conflict. Reflecting on the rejected gig humorously, Michael adds, “I think there’s a very small universe if anyone would have been thrilled watching me instead of Travolta.”
7. Rapper Ja Rule was anticipated to join the main cast after his brief cameo in the first episode of “The Fast and the Furious” but he declined
Despite the movie’s director persistently chasing Ja Rule for a response, his stance remained unchanged. While Ja Rule went on to appear in other films, his acting career didn’t achieve significant success.
8. When offered the role of Vivian Ward in “Pretty Woman,” Molly Ringwald declined
The actress deeply regretted her decision after the film became a massive success, with Julia Roberts delivering an outstanding performance in the role.
9. In “Pulp Fiction,” Samuel L. Jackson played Jules and won the BAFTA for Best Film Actor in a Supporting Role
Laurence Fishburne initially declined the role but eventually accepted it, going on to portray Morpheus in “The Matrix” series for years.
10. The Twilight franchise character Bella Swan made Kristen Stewart famous
The actress Emily Browning is the author’s first choice for this role, but she turned down the role. She never turned around in the rearview mirror quite the way the actors who portrayed the characters did in the movie because she wasn’t prepared for those actors to be so amazing and successful.
11. Josh Hartnett declined the roles of Superman and Batman, but he didn’t regret it and claimed it was the only moral choice he had ever made
The actor revealed that he turned down this collaboration because he did not want to be shackled to typecast roles. That role eventually went to Brandon Routh.
Example: Because Josh Hartnett is this Batman, Brad Pitt is the Neo, Halle Berry is the bus driver in “Speech.” Mind-blowing as that sounds, all of this may have happened if the performers had answered “yes.”
More often than not, it’s a scheduling problem, but every now and then, an actor doesn’t recognize a great role when they see it and ends up passing on a role of a lifetime. On the flip side though, some actors are elated that the casting people got it right.
