Casting directors don't don't always get it right.
From heroes of Middle-earth or the most evil man in the galaxy,
these actors weren't the first choices for their roles — but they were the best ones.
Released in 2008, "Iron Man" was the film that launched the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It
introduced the iconic character of Tony Stark to millions of people — a role that cemented
Robert Downey Jr. as one of the most well-known and highest paid actors in the MCU to date.
In the first film, Tony's best friend James "Rhodey" Rhodes is portrayed by Terrence Howard,
who was a real-life friend of Downey Jr. at the time. Initially, Howard seemed like a
perfect fit for Marvel, as he'd just come off his Oscar-nominated role in "Hustle & Flow" and his
part in the Academy Award-winning film "Crash." However, after the massive success of "Iron
Man," Howard allegedly wanted a pay increase to match that of lead Downey Jr. In an appearance on
Bravo's "Watch What Happens Live," Howard revealed that he had a three-film contract with Marvel,
and they were supposed to pay him $8 million for the sequel. However, after all was said and done,
he was only offered $1 million, with the rest of his salary going to Downey Jr. According
to Howard, Downey Jr. wouldn't have landed the role of Iron Man if it wasn't for him.
Because of the drama, Howard was given the boot and replaced by fellow "Crash" star Don Cheadle.
Cheadle would go on to portray the character of Rhodey-turned-War Machine in multiple other films,
including an upcoming lead role in Phase 5's "Armor Wars." While Howard's performance was
good in "Iron Man," Cheadle brings a certain elegance to the role as he
grows into more than just Iron Man's sidekick throughout the franchise.
"Hey, buddy! Didn't expect to see you here."
"Look: it's me, I'm here, deal with it. Let's move on."
"I just—"
"Drop it."
"Alright."
While "Iron Man" may have been the film to launch the MCU, it was 2000's "X-Men" that
helped to catapult the superhero genre back into the pop culture stratosphere. The success
of "X-Men" in 2000 can't be overstated: it launched a franchise of ten X-Men films,
along with two Deadpool movies so far and a spin-off in "The New Mutants."
Anchoring the entire franchise is the longtime presence of Hugh Jackman's Wolverine,
a character so popular that he essentially became the main protagonist of most of the
films. However, when "X-Men" was first being developed, casting directors initially offered
the part to Russell Crowe, who turned it down. The role then went to Dougray Scott,
but due to scheduling conflicts with "Mission: Impossible 2," he had to back out of the role.
After that, the director turned to the then-unknown Australian actor Hugh Jackman.
"X-Men" is all the better for it. Jackman has consistently put his all into the part,
culminating in a truly remarkable performance in 2017's "Logan." Jackman's portrayal is so loved
that it's almost impossible to think of anyone else playing Wolverine now that the X-Men are
coming to the MCU — and it's only a matter of time before Jackman reprises the role in "Deadpool 3."
"Cause I'm the best there is at what I do. And what I do best isn't very nice."
Reshoots are very expensive by nature, so the prospect of replacing an entire
role — especially a central one — after a film is nearing completion is almost unheard of. However,
following the shocking allegations of sexual assault that were levied against
Kevin Spacey in 2017, director Ridley Scott made the decision to
cut Spacey completely from his role in the film "All the Money in the World."
The actor had already filmed most of his scenes for the film, but Scott
hired celebrated star Christopher Plummer to step in and portray the role of J. Paul Getty
instead. Plummer began working on reshoots of the Getty Oil Company founder right away,
as Ridley was determined to still meet the movie's original release date. Not only was
this a morally sound decision on Scott's part, but it was also a boon for the film — Plummer
was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the 2018 Academy Awards for his work on the role.
Michelle Pfeiffer's alluring performance as Catwoman in Tim Burton's "Batman Returns"
almost never happened. Initially, the role was given to Oscar-nominated actress Annette Bening,
who had to suddenly drop out of the film after discovering she was pregnant with her first
child with her husband Warren Beatty. According to Insider, the producers of
the film were in a "panic," trying to find a replacement for the role at the last minute.
Bening had already been fitted for Catwoman's skin-tight outfit — so the casting team was
looking for people who could both act the part and fit in the costume. Luckily,
Michelle Pfeiffer was not only the perfect size for the costuming, but her performance in the
role was a truly defining one for the character. It's no wonder that she is consistently ranked
as one of the best actresses to have ever played the role of the whip-slinging antihero.
"I am Catwoman. Hear me roar."
Believe it or not, 1984's "Beverly Hills Cop" was supposed to star not Eddie Murphy,
but Sylvester Stallone. The film was originally meant to be an action-packed thriller.
Stallone had a more brutal story planned for the film, even suggesting that the character name be
changed from Axel Foley to Axel Cobretti. While this obviously never came to be,
the name Cobretti would later go to Stallone's character in 1986's "Cobra." Meanwhile, the studio
decided to go in an entirely different direction, as Stallone's new suggestions would have bumped
the cost of production way up. Just like that, Stallone was out, and Eddie Murphy was in.
Murphy's "Beverly Hills Cop" struck a lighter tone, resulting in one of the
most successful comedy franchises ever. Two sequels released in 1987 and 1994,
and a much-hyped fourth installment is on the way.
Nowadays, it's pretty much impossible to think of Isildur's heir and the
true king of Gondor as being anyone other than Viggo Mortensen. However,
many people have been surprised to learn that he only took on the role of Aragorn once shooting
was already underway for "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring." Initially,
Peter Jackson's epic trilogy had Stuart Townsend cast in the role — but after filming just four
short days, Jackson reportedly decided that the actor was simply too young.
Townsend later revealed that he was almost relieved when he was fired,
as his experience with the studio and director was not a positive one. However,
he was still quite miffed that after months of training and rehearsing for the role,
he never got paid for his time due to the terms of his contract. Nevertheless,
once Viggo Mortensen was brought on to replace him, the cast was able to work together to create
the cultural phenomenon that was "The Lord of the Rings." Thanks to Mortensen's portrayal,
Aragorn has become one of the most popular characters from the blockbuster franchise.
"I would have gone with you to the end… into the very fires of Mordor."
Before his appearance in "The Avengers" in 2012, the character of Bruce Banner
—more commonly known as The Hulk — was initially portrayed by two other actors
in major silver screen productions. First, Eric Bana took on the role in Ang Lee's 2003
film "Hulk."
— and this time,
Edward Norton portrayed the titular character.
Norton was originally meant to keep the role when the Hulk was brought into the larger story in
"The Avengers," but there were some severe and dramatic behind-the-scenes complications that
lead to his recasting. The studio ended up hiring Mark Ruffalo, who would go on
to play the character in every subsequent MCU film featuring the character thus far.
Compared to the other iterations, Ruffalo's Hulk is quieter in his demeanor. The actor
brings out more of his loneliness, intellect, collaborative spirit,
and kindness — all traits that were missing in the other portrayals of the character. It's
because of this that Ruffalo's Bruce Banner has truly grown into his own.
"I put the brains and the brawn together, and now look at me. Best of both worlds."
"Back to The Future" is another franchise that has been famously plagued with various
casting replacements. Fans of the franchise know that Marty's girlfriend Jennifer Parker
was portrayed by Claudia Wells in the first film — but when it came time to
shoot "Back to The Future Part II," she was replaced by Elisabeth Shue.
There's also the very messy matter of Jeffrey Weissman replacing Crispin Glover
as George McFly. After a pay dispute with the studio, Glover was replaced by Weissman,
who wore prosthetics to look like Glover in the sequel film. Glover
then sued over the use of his image without his consent — and thanks in part to his suit,
studios have largely avoided using actors' likenesses without permission ever since.
However, the most notable replacement — and the only one that we'd consider a great upgrade for
the film — was when production decided to have Michael J. Fox replace Eric Stoltz as Marty.
"Back To the Future" was already four weeks into production with Stoltz playing the film's lead
character when director Robert Zemeckis decided he just wasn't right for the role. Zemeckis felt
that Stoltz was too serious, instead wanting the project to be more light and carefree. Fox,
whose schedule was complicated by his commitment to the hit series "Family Ties," eventually came
in to reshoot Marty's already-completed scenes and finish the film. The actor
brought all of the desired energy to the character, transforming the film into a
full-on franchise and one of the most iconic and influential sci-fi movies in cinematic history.
The 2005 dystopian political drama "V For Vendetta" initially starred
actor James Purefoy in the role of V, an eccentric masked vigilante who attempts to
spark a revolution through acts of terrorism. Purefoy spent six weeks filming the role of
V before ultimately leaving the movie. There were rumors flying around that he
couldn't stand wearing the mask, but that wasn't actually the case. Purefoy stated
that both he and production agreed not to go into details over why he left the project,
but he assured fans that it wasn't over him having to wear a mask for the role.
Once Purefoy left the film, Hugo Weaving stepped in to replace him. While Purefoy may very well
have done an excellent job if he'd stuck with the role, Weaving's performance is downright perfect.
The actor is able to embody the strength and emotion of the character without using any
facial expressions. There's a reason V's mask has become such an immortal image, after all.
"I'm not questioning your powers of observation,
I'm merely remarking upon the paradox of asking a masked man who he is."
While most actor replacements made way into production require massive reshoots,
the one in Spike Jonze's sci-fi romance "Her" required only minimal revision.
Initially, it was Samantha Morton who was cast to play Samantha, the faceless
artificial intelligence that Joaquin Phoenix's character finds himself falling in love with.
Morton recorded all of her lines, and Phoenix's acting was timed with her vocal rhythms, but it
wasn't until after the movie wrapped that director Jonze decided Morton wasn't right for the role.
Jonze told Vulture that it was during the editing stage in post-production that he
realized Morton's delivery didn't create the effect that he wanted. That was when he chose
to recast the role with Scarlett Johansson, revise the character, and bring back Phoenix to redo some
of his own lines as well. Ultimately, this was the right call, as Johansson's performance was
highly celebrated — including a win for Best Actress at the Rome Film Festival in 2013.
Johansson would later use her voice acting talents again in films like "The Jungle Book,"
"Isle of Dogs," and "Sing 2." Thanks in part to Johansson's involvement, "Her" is able to
present a complex and compelling relationship between Phoenix's character and his beloved AI.
When "Star Wars: A New Hope" was released in 1977, Darth Vader was the villain of everyone's
worst nightmares. So when it came time to reveal that there was an even bigger baddie
pulling Vader's strings in the follow-up films, that casting had to be on point. Whoever played
the evil emperor had to be more menacing than Vader — a seemingly impossible task.
In "Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back," the emperor is voiced by Clive Revill and
portrayed by actress Marjorie Eaton. However, when it came time to really
develop the character and have Luke Skywalker face off with him in "Return of the Jedi," Ian
McDiarmid was cast to play both his voice and body. McDiarmid would continue to reprise his
character in the prequel and sequel films. Although it ended up being a subtle change,
it made all the difference — the intensity and power that McDiarmid brings to the role
is unmatched. Audiences can instantly detect that there's something sinister about Palpatine,
but we can also see how he's so easily deceived everyone around him. Without
McDiarmid's portrayal of the emperor, "Star Wars" would not be what it is today.
"In time, you will call me Master."
Director James Cameron's Alien sequel introduced audiences to the likable Corporal Hicks,
a space marine and potential love interest for Sigourney Weaver's leading hero Ripley. Initially,
Cameron cast James Remar in the role of Hicks, but he was later fired and replaced by Michael
Biehn. According to ScreenRant, Remar was reportedly incredibly difficult to work with
on set — and as such, his portrayal of Hicks was a lot darker than was originally intended.
Remar later admitted that he was suffering from a serious drug addiction during the time of filming,
and that likely resulted in his being let go and replaced in the project.
Biehn was brought in as the replacement fresh off of his
success from "Terminator." He brought a different perspective to the character
of Corporal Hicks — one that aligned more with Cameron's original vision. However,
if you look closely at "Aliens," there are still a few moments where you can see Remar's Hicks,
as it was too expensive to reshoot and replace every single one of his scenes with Biehn.