15 Major Movie (And TV) Roles That Famous Actors, Somehow, Turned Down
![15 Major Movie (And TV) Roles That Famous Actors, Somehow, Turned Down](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/1/0/792710_320x180.jpg)
Look, we get it: casting depends on the absolute perfect fit. And sometimes you, the actor, don't want to take a project you don't feel right for! Or heck, maybe scheduling conflicts get in the way. Those pesky calendars, always dictating where we need to go. Oh, damn, we just remembered we're late for a dentist's appointment. Not gonna stop us from posting this article, though! Our teeth can wait, we are true internet wizards here at Cracked.
All that said, there are some truly baffling times actors turned down roles. As a bunch of sit-at-home grunt workers typing on computers—not in our mother's basement, we'll have you know—we found these pretty hard to believe.
Did you know that they offered James Gandolfini millions of dollars to join the cast of The Office? But he still said no? The cast of The Office! You gotta be pretty secure in your professional stature to turn that down. Here’s the full story, plus 14 others:
![Ethan Hawke could have been in Independence Day, but he said Nah. He was up for Will Smith's role, but he thought the script was so braindead, he literally threw it out of his car in the middle of reading it. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/1/6/792716.jpg)
Source: IndieWire
![Years ago, Hugh Jackman turned down the opportunity to play James Bond. He did that because he was afraid X-Men and Bond would eat up all his time, and because he thought Bond movies were getting too ridiculous. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/2/2/792722.jpg)
Source: DenOfGeek
![Olivia Munn passed on playing Ryan Reynolds' love interest in Deadpool. She didn't want to play a girlfriend character basically who doesn't do much, and wanted a more action-y role (so she picked X-Men: Apocalypse). CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/2/3/792723.jpg)
Source: IndieWire
![Claire Danes could have played Rose in Titanic instead of Kate Winslet. MUCH But she'd just done a romantic movie (Romeo + Juliet) with Leo DiCaprio in Mexico City, where Titanic was also going to be shot, so she passed on the role. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/2/1/792721.jpg)
Source: Vanity Fair
![Jessica Simpson nearly took Rachel McAdams' role in The Notebook. She only passed because they refused to take out the sex scene - and kind of regretted it once she heard they cast Ryan Gosling, her first crush CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/2/0/792720.jpg)
Source: Vulture
![They almost convinced Viggo Mortensen to play Wolverine in X-Men. But he didn't like the idea of committing to so many movies plus, his son Henry objected to a lot of things in Wolverine's portrayal. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/1/8/792718.jpg)
Source: Entertainment Weekly
![We could've watched Josh Hartnett, not Christian Bale, as Batman. Hartnett regrets passing on the role, but more because it meant that he missed a chance to work with Christopher Nolan than anything else. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/1/4/792714.jpg)
Source: DenOfGeek
![They asked lan McKellen to play Dumbledore, but he just told them no. The reason? The actor who played Dumbledore in the first two movies, Richard Harris, called McKellen technically brilliant but passionless. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/1/9/792719.jpg)
Source: Vanity Fair
![Bill Nighy was asked to play the Doctor in Doctor Who, but he refused. Apparently, it was too much for him - he said, No disrespect to Doctor Who or anything, I just think that it comes with too much baggage. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/2/4/792724.jpg)
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
![They offered James Gandolfini several million for a role on The Office. They wanted him to replace Steve Carell after Carell's departure, but Gandolfini wasn't 100% comfortable with comedy, plus he was super busy anyway. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/1/7/792717.jpg)
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
![We could have watched Alec Baldwin as a villain in an MCU movie. Baldwin refuses to say which movie they wanted him to be in, but says he had to refuse because he was unavailable due to his wife's pregnancy. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/1/5/792715.jpg)
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
![In another universe, Charlize Theron played Wonder Woman's mom. That's the role they offered her, even though Gal Gadot is just 9 years younger than her (and Theron called it a slap in the face). CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/2/5/792725.jpg)
Source: Vanity Fair
![Burt Reynolds turned the role that went to Richard Gere in Pretty Woman. They asked Reynolds to play Edward Lewis, but he said no- when he was asked why in an interview, much later, he said Because I'm an idiot. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/1/2/792712.jpg)
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
![Matt Damon nearly got cast as the protagonist of James Cameron's Avatar. OSTR NALE INTERI n' 'ARTE AFICA Cameron offered the role and 10% of what Avatar made, apparently. So, yeah. I've left more money on the table than any actor actually, Damon said. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/1/1/792711.jpg)
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
![Harry Styles said no to playing ArieI's love interest in The Little Mermaid remake. I'll enjoy watching it, I'm sure, he said, and explained that he turned it down because he wanted to focus on making music for a while. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/7/1/3/792713.jpg)
Source: The Hollywood Reporter