Hollywood is definitely a place where many dreams come true and where individuals go on to become successful and famous in the entertainment world as superstars, producers, and directors, among others. It is also somewhere one mistake can turn even the most famous into a nobody, even making them go off the grid. Nowhere is this truer than with actors and actresses whose faces we see on-screen, their roles and acting clearly imprinted in our minds’ eyes.
Some actors and actresses become so deeply identified with the characters they have portrayed that people often remember and talk about them years after their appearance in these roles. However, there are also many famous actors and actresses who, for some reason or another, have turned down roles or never got parts in the movies that became box office blockbusters. Let us take a look at these actors who turned down or were turned down for these iconic roles that epitomize the phrase “close but no cigar”.
Matt Damon – ‘Avatar’
If you turn down the starring role in one of the highest grossing films of all time, then you will probably never forget it. Matt Damon was originally considered for the role of Jake Sully, the protagonist of the hit movie Avatar and he even met with James Cameron to talk about it. In fact, he read the script and planned on doing the movie. In an interview, he said he already knew that Avatar would be a big hit. However, he was in the final stages of another film, Bourne Ultimatum, which resulted in scheduling issues for him. He had to forego the opportunity of working on the movie, which he said was actually tough.
Damon told Playboy in an interview that “Having to say no to Avatar was tough because I particularly wanted to work with James Cameron, and still do because he is fantastic”. We are pretty sure that Matt Damon is doing fine, however.
Matt Damon – Avatar
Liam Hemsworth – ‘Thor’
The brothers Chris and Liam initially auditioned for Thor. The people at the studio were actually looking elsewhere for the right actor to play the role and were even considering Liam for it. Chris was, at that time, shooting another movie, Cabin in the Woods, when Joss Whedon and Andrew Goddard asked him why he was not on the list of the top 5 actors considered for the role and informed him further that his brother Liam was on it. Chris just said that maybe he blew up his audition.
However, none of the 5 guys, including Liam, ended up with the part, spurring his manager to request for another audition by saying, “You know, he’s (Liam’s) got an older brother, can we bring him back in?’’ That was how Chris got a second audition in a hotel room in Vancouver. The fun thing was that Chris’ mother read the part of Anthony Hopkins. The rest is history, as we now see Chris playing the role of Thor in the past 7 years. Liam, on the other hand, went on to star in the Hunger Games series and Independence Day: Resurgence, among others.
Liam Hemsworth Thor