People may believe that celebs have it easy when it comes to securing work. While popular actors do have a certain amount of access, there are no assurances in the entertainment industry, which means they, like the rest of us, might lose jobs. Rejection is a part of life, and some of the biggest celebrities were turned down for roles they really wanted. Or had it until it was taken away and handed to someone else. Here’s a list of 5 performers that were devastated after being passed over for iconic roles:
1. Ryan Gosling in The Lovely Bones
To obtain the weight he felt he needed to play Jack Salmon in The Lovely Bones, Ryan Gosling went to such extent that he drank melted ice cream. However, a ccording to Gosling’s statement to The Hollywood Reporter, filmmaker Peter Jackson had a different concept of the character in mind. “We didn’t talk very much during the preproduction process, which was the problem,” the actor said. “It was a huge movie, and there’s so many things to deal with, and he couldn’t deal with the actors individually. I just showed up on set, and I had gotten it wrong. Then I was fat and unemployed.” Mark Wahlberg later stepped into the role of the bereaved father.
2. Jessica Biel in The Notebook
Jessica Biel was reportedly desperate to star alongside Ryan Gosling in ‘The Notebook,’ according to sources. However, Rachel McAdams won the role in the end. She said in an interview with Elle magazine that she wanted the part “so badly” and that people in the acting field are just gluttons for torture.
3. Mindy Kaling in Bridesmaids
The only way Bridesmaids could have been even better than it already was would have been if Mindy Kaling had starred in the 2011 film. We’re not the only people who believe this. This was also a goal for The Mindy Project’s writer-creator. The actress revealed she had tested for the comedy flick and remarked, “I practiced it so much and was so into it and I loved that whole cast … That was one that was a heartbreaker.”
4. Tom Hiddleston in Pirates of the Caribbean
If Tom Hiddleston hadn’t walked in to the test screening with a hangover, he might have gotten one of the iconic roles in Pirates of the Caribbean. Hiddleston revealed how he got a draft for Pirates of the Caribbean the night before the audition when he just graduated from theatre school and had no idea how the industry operated. He glanced at the screenplay quickly before going out drinking with his pals, unaware of the gravity of the situation. The casting director, as you could expect, was not pleased and taunted him to “learn it the next time.”
5. Nicole Scherzinger in Baywatch
The vocalist of the Pussycat Dolls fought very hard to be cast in the one of the iconic roles of The Rock’s Baywatch reboot. Nicole Scherzinger told Glamour, “I started this year working out every day, motivated to get … in shape because I was determined I was gonna be the new Baywatch girl. I was hell-bent, I’m an ocean angel, I love it.” However, even after her attempts, she was not cast in the role, “I was devastated. What is my year, what is my life, if I’m not in Baywatch?!,” she exclaimed.
