Roles Actors Turned Down: Famous Actors and the Parts They Said No To

Ever wondered what it would be like if there was no such thing as scheduling conflicts or creative differences when it came to casting major movie roles? Hollywood would be backward today. We would be living in a world where Tom Hanks would be Jerry Maguire. How many Golden Globe trophies would Jim Carrey own had he not turned down playing Buddy the Elf?

The most iconic roles in box office history did not always start off that way. No one creates a star-making role on the big screen. That is something that happens organically when one actor becomes the lead role. Leonardo Dicaprio had to audition for tons of movie roles before he eventually played Arnie in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, changing his life forever. What if he turned down the role of Jack in Titanic and took on Patrick Bateman (American Psycho) or Dirk Diggler (Boogie Nights)?

How many other Hollywood icons turned down major movie roles that you know about?

roles actors turned down

Famous actors turn down iconic movie roles for various reasons, like scheduling conflicts, creative differences, or personal reasons. Many times a star might refuse a movie role because they do not want to work with movie studios like Warner Bros, Paramount Pictures, or Sony Pictures. The list of reasons is endless, and some actors will never even explain their decision to turn down a chance to play an iconic role because no one knows if a big movie is going to be a hit.

Regardless of their reasons, it happens so often that it is impossible to keep track of which starring role originally was written for Leonardo Dicaprio, Tom Hanks, Kate Winslet, or Sandra Bullock.