10 Surprising Reasons Celebrities Didn’t Get the Role They Wanted

We get excited whenever we lay out our goals or apply for the dream job we’ve always wanted. We even put in extra hours and effort to fit into a role. Being a famous actor or actress is no different. As much as they want something, even celebrities miss out on opportunities, which is okay. What matters is moving on and learning from it.

At Bright Side, we compiled a list of celebs who came close to landing their dream role, but things didn’t go as planned, and the reasons may surprise you.

1. Harry Styles

Harry Styles wanted to play the leading role in the movie Elvis. However, the director said, “Harry is a really talented actor. I would work on something with him. The real issue with him is that he’s Harry Styles. He’s already an icon.” And the role went to Austin Butler.

2. Tom Holland

In the movie Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Tom Holland wanted to play the role of Finn. He auditioned, but it didn’t go well.

He said, “I just couldn’t stop laughing. I found it so funny. And I felt really bad because she was trying really hard to be a convincing android or drone or whatever they’re called. Yeah, I obviously didn’t get the part. That wasn’t my best moment.”

3. Freddie Prinze Jr.

Freddie Prinze Jr. almost made his dream of playing Peter Parker come true in the movie Spider-Man. However, during the audition, he went off-topic.

He said, “I go into this whole universe on what my favorite parts of Spider-Man were, and I foolishly bring up the alien symbiote, which is Venom. When I left, I was like, ’You just talked about Venom instead of Spider-Man for 25 minutes,’ and I drove home so upset and angry.”

4. Andrew Garfield

Andrew Garfield wanted to play the role of Prince Caspian so badly in the movie The Chronicles of Narnia.

However, he said, “I remember I was so desperate. I auditioned for Prince Caspian in The Chronicles of Narnia, and I thought, ’This could be it, this could be it.’ And that handsome, brilliant actor, Ben Barnes, ended up getting the role. I think it was down to me and him, and I remember I was obsessed.”

5. Eddie Redmayne

Eddie Redmayne auditioned for the role of Kylo Ren in the movie Star Wars: The Force Awakens. However, the role went to Adam Driver.

Eddie explained, “That was really a hilarious moment. Because it was Nina Gold, who I have to thank a lot because she’s cast me in several films, and she was just sitting there, and I was trying again and again with different versions of my kind of ’koohh paaaah’ voice. And after like 10 shots, she’s like, ’You got anything else?’ I was like, ’No.’”

6. Chris Klein

Chris Kelin auditioned for a role in Mamma Mia!, but the actor was required to sing during the audition (and the production itself), and it didn’t go well for him.

He said, “I took a chance. I can’t sing! I don’t know why I was in there. But I took a chance! It’s a musical, let’s see if I can give it a shot. And, you know, the way that they put it out there, it gets taken out of context and all that. It was really a dreadful audition.”

7. Robin Williams

It’s been reported that Robin Williams wanted to play the role of Hagrid in the Harry Potter movie franchise. However, the role was made for a British actor. The casting director revealed that “Robin had called because he really wanted to be in the movie, but it was a British-only edict, and once he said no to Robin, he wasn’t going to say yes to anybody else, that’s for sure. It couldn’t be.”

8. Robert Redford

Robert Redford auditioned for the leading role in the film The Graduate, but he didn’t get it because, as the director put it, he couldn’t play a loser.

The director commented, “We interviewed hundreds, maybe thousands of men. I said, ’You can’t play it. You can never play a loser.’ And Redford said, ’What do you mean? Of course, I can play a loser.’ And I said, ’OK, have you ever struck out with a girl?’ and he said, ’What do you mean?’ And he wasn’t joking.”

9. Sean Young

Sean Young was supposed to play the role of Vicki Vale in the movie Batman. Unfortunately, the actress got into an accident and was unable to play the part properly, as it required extensive movement. She said, “They did spring the horse-riding thing on me, and I fell and had an accident.”

10. Christian Bale

Christian Bale auditioned for the role of Jack Dawson in the movie Titanic. However, the director decided not to have two British actors playing American characters in one film. Eventually, the role landed on Leonardo Di Caprio.

Which of these actors piqued your interest? Do you have other actors in mind that you think would fit these roles best? Tell us in the comments.