12 Times Actors Shared Their Dream Roles

A lot of people have a goal they want to achieve at their job, and actors are no exception. Many actors dream that one day they will get to play the character they’re fond of the most. And the outcome differs — some think it’s too late to play their favorite role, and others have already achieved their dream.

Bright Side found out what roles some of our favorite actors dream of playing, and we were surprised at their answers.

1. Lindsay Lohan

Lindsay Lohan has been outspoken about her desire to play The Little Mermaid’s Ariel because it is her favorite movie. In a 2019 interview, she said that she was going to ask her agent to see if she could get cast as her favorite Disney princess. Looks like it wasn’t meant to be — since then, the actress, Halle Bailey, has been announced as Ariel in the upcoming live-action version of the film.

2. Viola Davis

When asked about what dream role she has that she hasn’t played yet, Viola Davis answered that it’s Nora from A Doll’s House without hesitation. The actress noted that she hasn’t seen any African-American women play that role yet, so maybe one day she will get the chance to be the first one to do so.

3. Chris Evans

The actor shared on social media that if he could go back in time and play any role in any movie, he would pick the role of the deuteragonist, Madmartigan, from the 1988 movie, Willow.

4. Lea Michele

The actress said that at the beginning of her career, she dreamt of being in the Broadway production of West Side Story as the main character, Maria. She auditioned for it, but ultimately didn’t get the role, as the directors were looking for a Latina actress. While she was upset about not getting the role, she got cast in a musical series, Glee, where she kind of got to star as Maria — her character Rachel got the role in her high school production of the musical.

5. Constance Wu

Constance Wu read the novel, Crazy Rich Asians, and felt the connection to its main character, Rachel Chu. She wanted to play the role, but thought it would never be adapted to the big screen. But her prediction did come true — not only did it get turned into a movie, but Wu was also cast as Rachel.

6. Idris Elba

The actor opened up about wanting to play the jazz pianist and composer, Thelonious Monk. In his own words, he is fascinated with how Monk was able to create something great and express himself with music while battling a mental illness.

7. Jennifer Aniston

In 2020, Jennifer Aniston revealed that her dream role is Wonder Woman. However, in her own words, she “waited too long” for it, and the role had been cast again a few years prior. The actress herself admits that playing this character will likely not happen, but she doesn’t let that bring her down and has other career goals, such as acting in more comedies.

8. Halle Berry

Halle Berry’s dream role is to play the activist, Angela Davis, who has been outspoken about her views since the 1960s. The actress said that it’s her goal to play Davis in her lifetime, but she is not sure if this is going to happen.

9. Dante Basco

The voice of Prince Zuko actually lost his dream role to his colleague on Avatar: The Last Airbender, Sokka’s voice actor, Jack De Sena. And that role is Robin from Batman. Basco did not necessarily want to star as him in the live-action production, as he auditioned for the voice roles of Robin as well, but so far, there has been no luck.

10. Dave Bautista

The actor has 2 dream roles: he has been outspoken about wanting to join the DC Extended Universe as the villain, Bane, but his number one goal remains to play the role of Ernest Hemingway. The actor says that Hemingway and his story intrigues him greatly, from the way he lived to the way he died.

11. Kirsten Dunst

Kirsten Dunst has German roots on her father’s side, so due to that connection, she is interested in playing the actress, Marlene Dietrich. She described Dietrich as a “cool and an interesting person to play,” but she doesn’t know if her dream will ever come true, as she hasn’t heard of any projects involving the actress of the twentieth century.

12. David Tennant

Scottish actor David Tennant got inspired to become an actor because he watched the show, Doctor Who, growing up, and ever since then, his dream role was to play The Doctor himself. He recalled that while some kids liked superheroes, he could never relate to them and identified with The Doctor instead. His wish came true when he got to play Tenth Doctor in the 2005 reboot of the series.

Which of these actors can you imagine doing a good job of playing their favorite character? What is your job aspiration?