Choosing the perfect actor for a movie role is already a delicate process, but it becomes
even more difficult when an actor leaves a production, which can happen for any number
of reasons.
Directors and casting professionals can be left scrambling to replace their departing
stars.
Here are some of the craziest last-minute replacements we've seen on the big screen
— some of which ended up being the replacement actor's most successful role.
Mike Myers in Shrek
It's hard to imagine anything but Mike Myers' voice coming from the lovable animated ogre,
but the story of Shrek's casting is actually quite tragic.
Originally, comedian and character actor Chris Farley had been cast in the role, and according
to his brother Kevin, Farley actually completed recording nearly all of his dialogue for the
original Shrek film.
"People see me and they go, 'AHHH!
Help!
A big, stupid, stinky, smelly, ugly ogre!"
Unfortunately, Farley had been struggling for some time with alcohol and substance abuse,
and in December 1997, he passed away in his Chicago apartment after an accidental drug
overdose.
DreamWorks rushed to find a replacement, and chose Myers.
Additionally, they recast the role of Fiona with Cameron Diaz, who replaced Farley's S.N.L.
castmate Janeane Garofalo.
Christian Bale in American Psycho
In an odd turn of events, Christian Bale ended up replacing himself for the role of Patrick
Bateman in the 2000 black comedy horror film American Psycho — well, sort of.
Director Mary Harron had chosen Bale for the role, but the British actor wasn't yet the
superstar he is today.
Executives at Lionsgate wanted a higher-profile actor, and reportedly made a $20 million offer
to Leonardo DiCaprio — without informing Harron.
Harron fought hard to keep Bale, but Lionsgate eventually removed her from the project, too,
replacing her with Oliver Stone.
Stone began revising the script, and the film fell into a period of development hell.
Eventually, DiCaprio left to film The Beach, and Stone walked out as well.
When Lionsgate finally came back to Harron, she agreed to return as director, with Bale
as Bateman.
Their perseverance definitely paid off, as the film became a polarizing box office success
and eventual cult classic — helping propel Bale to the top of Hollywood's A-list.
"Well, isn't this a coincidence?"
Hugh Jackman in X-Men
Although he ended up landing the role of Wolverine in X-Men, Hugh Jackman wasn't director Bryan
Singer's first choice.
Originally, Singer wanted Russell Crowe, who turned it down.
Crowe recommended his friend, Jackman, for the part, but Singer decided to go with the
more experienced actor Dougray Scott.
Unfortunately for Scott, production on Mission: Impossible 2 was delayed, leaving him unavailable
when filming for X-Men began.
Forced to make a last-minute change in the main cast, Singer called in Jackman for an
audition, gave him the role, and the rest is history.
Geena Davis in A League of Their Own
With her performance as Dottie Hinson in the 1992 sports dramedy A League of Their Own,
Geena Davis won the hearts of moviegoers everywhere.
"Hey, who's the goddamned manager here, I AM!"
"Then act like it, ya big lush!"
However, director Penny Marshall's original choice was actress Debra Winger, who was furious
when she learned that Marshall had cast pop superstar Madonna in the film.
Marshall later recalled in her memoir that before walking off the set, Winger told her,
"You're making an Elvis film!"
Subsequently, Davis nailed her audition in Marshall's backyard — and proved that she
could throw a ball.
While the rest of the cast had been training together for months prior to filming, Davis
had to work hard and fast to get into shape for the demanding role.
Michael Biehn in Aliens
It's probably hard to picture anyone but Michael Biehn as Dwayne Hicks in the 1986 movie Aliens,
but originally, it was supposed to be James Remar.
However, a couple of weeks after filming started, Remar abruptly left the production.
He later revealed during a Sidebar podcast interview that while he had originally cited
"urgent matters at home" to explain his departure, the truth is that he was struggling with drug
addiction at the time, and director James Cameron fired Remar after he was arrested
for possession.
With no time to prepare for the physically demanding role, Michael Biehn was brought
in as Remar's replacement.
Ed Harris in The Truman Show
The critically acclaimed satirical film The Truman Show wouldn't be the same without the
character Christof, the obsessive showrunner played masterfully by Ed Harris.
But director Peter Weir didn't choose Harris at first — originally, Dennis Hopper was
cast in the role.
After filming began, Weir and Hopper reportedly ran into creative differences on the set,
leading Hopper to leave the production entirely.
Hopper later revealed that he was fired after only two days of filming — a decision he
called "a major blow" at the time.
Called up at the last minute to replace Hopper, Harris threw himself into the role — earning
himself an Oscar nomination and a Golden Globe win for Best Supporting Actor.
Clint Eastwood in Dirty Harry
In addition to his performance as the Man With No Name, Clint Eastwood is also frequently
remembered for his portrayal of the hard-as-nails homicide cop Harry Callahan in Dirty Harry.
But the role almost went to another famous performer: Frank Sinatra.
Supposedly, the script written for Sinatra had Harry toting a 12-gauge shotgun as his
signature weapon.
But as production got underway, Sinatra had to back out — a broken hand he sustained
while filming a fight scene for The Manchurian Candidate left him unable to hold a gun.
After ensuring the original script would be used, Eastwood agreed to play Harry — cementing
his place in pop-culture history with a 44 Magnum and the frequently misquoted line,
"You've got to ask yourself one question: 'Do I feel lucky?'
Well, do you, punk?"
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