50 Celebrities Who Turned Down Iconic Roles
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You'll never guess who almost played Rose in 'Titanic'...😳
There's nothin' like missing out on one of the highest-grossing box office hits to make you regret that role you didn't take (we're lookin' at you, Gwyneth Paltrow). Coulda, shoulda, woulda, are we right? Ahead, 50 celebs who skipped out on iconic TV and movie roles.
By Rachel Epstein
20th Century Fox; Getty - 2/51
Marilyn Monroe
The role: Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)
Who *actually* played it: Audrey Hepburn
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Rooney Mara
The role: Maya in Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
Who *actually* played it: Jessica Chastain
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Ellen DeGeneres
The role: Phoebe in Friends (1994-2004)
Who *actually* played it: Lisa Kudrow
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Ryan Gosling
The role: Christian Grey in Fifty Shades (2015)
Who *actually* played it: Jamie Dornan
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Tea Leoni
The role: Rachel in Friends (1994-2004)
Who *actually* played it: Jennifer Aniston
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Gillian Anderson
The role: Cersei Lannister in Game of Thrones (2011-present)
Who *actually* played it: Lena Headey
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Brad Pitt
The role: Jim Lovell in Apollo 13 (1995)
Who *actually* played it: Tom Hanks
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Denzel Washington
The role: Detective David Mills in Se7en (1995)
Who *actually* played it: Brad Pitt
Jeff Kravitz - 10/51
Anne Hathaway
The role: Tiffany in Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
Who *actually* played it: Jennifer Lawrence
Vera Anderson - 11/51
Hugh Jackman
The role: James Bond in Casino Royale (2006)
Who *actually* played it: Daniel Craig
ROBYN BECK - 12/51
Tom Cruise
The role: Ren McCormack in Footloose (1984)
Who *actually* played it: Kevin Bacon
Walter McBride - 13/51
Leonardo DiCaprio
The role: Dirk Diggler in Boogie Nights (1997)
Who *actually* played it: Mark Wahlberg
SGranitz - 14/51
Will Smith
The role: Django in Django Unchained (2012)
Who *actually* played it: Jamie Foxx
Michael Tran - 15/51
Robert Pattinson
The role: Christian Grey in Fifty Shades (2015)
Who *actually* played it: Jamie Dornan
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Sir Ian McKellen
The role: Dumbledore in Harry Potter (2001)
Who *actually* played it: Richard Harris
Bill Davila - 17/51
Tom Hanks
The role: Jerry Maguire in Jerry Maguire (1996)
Who *actually* played it: Tom Cruise
Bob Grant - 18/51
Angelina Jolie
The role: Alex Munday in Charlie’s Angels (2000)
Who *actually* played it: Lucy Liu
Axelle/Bauer-Griffin - 19/51
Dana Delany
The role: Carrie Bradshaw in Sex and the City (1998-2004)
Who *actually* played it: Sarah Jessica Parker
Jean-Paul Aussenard - 20/51
Bette Midler
The role: Sister Mary Clarence in Sister Act (1992)
Who *actually* played it: Whoopi Goldberg
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Emma Stone
The role: One of the women in Ghostbusters (2016)
Who *actually* played it: Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones
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Christina Applegate
The role: Elle Woods in Legally Blonde (2001)
Who *actually* played it: Reese Witherspoon
Frank Trapper - 23/51
Charlie Hunnam
The role: Christian Grey in Fifty Shades (2015)
Who *actually* played it: Jamie Dornan
Frederick M. Brown - 24/51
Julia Roberts
The role: Leigh Anne Tuohy in The Blind Side (2009)
Who *actually* played it: Sandra Bullock
Bruce Glikas - 25/51
Reese Witherspoon
The role: Sidney Prescott in Scream (1996)
Who *actually* played it: Neve Campbell
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Matthew Broderick
The role: Walter White in Breaking Bad (2008-2013)
Who *actually* played it: Bryan Cranston
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Jim Carrey
The role: Buddy in Elf (2003)
Who *actually* played it: Will Ferrell
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Helen Mirren
The role: Ms. Weiss in Precious (2009)
Who *actually* played it: Mariah Carey
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Lucy Hale
The role: Anastasia Steele in Fifty Shades (2015)
Who *actually* played it: Dakota Johnson
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Drew Barrymore
The role: Nomi Malone in Showgirls (1995)
Who *actually* played it: Elizabeth Berkley
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Katie Holmes
The role: Piper in Orange Is the New Black (2013-present)
Who *actually* played it: Taylor Schilling
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John Travolta
The role: Forrest Gump in Forrest Gump (1994)
Who *actually* played it: Tom Hanks
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Miles Teller
The role: Sebastian in La La Land (2016)
Who *actually* played it: Ryan Gosling
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Emma Watson
The role: Mia in La La Land (2016)
Who *actually* played it: Emma Stone
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Nicolas Cage
The role: Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings (2001)
Who *actually* played it: Viggo Mortensen
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Anne Hathaway
The role: Alison Scott in Knocked Up (2007)
Who *actually* played it: Katherine Heigl
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Sandra Bullock
The role: Maggie in Million Dollar Baby (2004)
Who *actually* played it: Hilary Swank
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Angela Bassett
The role: Leticia in Monster's Ball (2002)
Who *actually* played it: Halle Berry
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Gwyneth Paltrow
The role: Rose in Titanic (1997)
Who *actually* played it: Kate Winslet
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Julia Roberts
The role: Margaret Tate in The Proposal (2009)
Who *actually* played it: Sandra Bullock
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Mark Wahlberg
The role: Ennis Del Mar in Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Who *actually* played it: Heath Ledger (R.I.P.)
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Sarah Michelle Gellar
The role: Cher Horowitz in Clueless (1995)
Who *actually* played it: Alicia Silverstone
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Paul Giamatti
The role: Michael Scott in The Office (2005-2013)
Who *actually* played it: Steve Carell
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Emily Blunt
The role: Black Widow in Iron Man 2 (2010)
Who *actually* played it: Scarlett Johansson
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Johnny Depp
The role: Ferris Bueller in Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)
Who *actually* played it: Matthew Broderick
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Angelina Jolie
The role: Dr. Ryan Stone in Gravity (2013)
Who *actually* played it: Sandra Bullock
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Frances Bean Cobain
The role: Bella in Twilight (2008)
Who *actually* played it: Kristen Stewart
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Alec Baldwin
The role: Mr. Big in Sex and the City (1998-2004)
Who *actually* played it: Chris Noth
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Molly Ringwald
The role: Vivian in Pretty Woman (1990)
Who *actually* played it: Julia Roberts
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Katie Holmes
The role: Buffy in Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003)
Who *actually* played it: Sarah Michelle Gellar
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Michelle Pfeiffer
The role: Thelma in Thelma & Louise (1991)
Who *actually* played it: Geena Davis
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