13 Celebrities You Probably Didn't Realize Were Fired From These Big Roles But Still Continued To Have Successful Careers
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1.Rachel Bilson
Rachel reflected on losing a job after she spoke candidly about her sex life, which included not receiving an orgasm from sex until she was 38.
“This is the first time it’s ever happened to me in my professional life that I lost a job this week because of things that were said,” Rachel said on her Broad Ideas podcast.
“A job got taken away from me because I was speaking candidly and openly about sex in a humorous way on our friend’s podcast. I basically got a job, that I already had, pulled from me because I was speaking openly about sex.”
2.Taylor Momsen
Taylor is widely know for her role as Jenny Humphrey on Gossip Girl. But as seasons progressed, Taylor's appearances on the show started to dwindle, until she was officially cut from the show. "Creative differences" were initially listed as the reason for her departure, but her behavior on set was also linked to it.
Taylor upset Project Runway‘s Tim Gunn, who played the mentor to Jenny in an episode. Tim criticized Taylor for her lack of professionalism on the set: "What a diva," Tim told E! News. "She was pathetic, she couldn’t remember her lines, and she didn’t even have that many. I thought to myself, ‘Why are we being held hostage by this brat?'"
Things happening off set didn't make it any better. Remember when she randomly started beef with Rihanna and Miley Cyrus?
3.Isaiah Washington
Grey's Anatomy has seen a ton of cast members come and go, while others had no choice. Isaiah was one of the latter. Isaiah played Dr. Preston Burke in the first three seasons of the series and had a fictional relationship with beloved character Dr. Cristina Yang.
Isaiah was fired from Grey's Anatomy for allegedly calling his then-costar T. R. Knight an anti-gay slur, as well as getting into a physical altercation with Patrick Dempsey.
4.Megan Fox
Megan Fox starred in the first two films in Michael Bay's Transformers franchise. Although she originally signed on for the third movie, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, her contract was immediately cut after some controversial remarks she made about the film's director.
Michael has built a reputation for himself as being hard to work with on set, and Megan's allegations didn't help: "He’s like Napoleon and he wants to create this insane, infamous mad-man reputation," Megan told Wonderland magazine. "He wants to be like Hitler on his sets, and he is."
5.Julianne Moore
Having creative differences isn't uncommon in Hollywood, especially because it's filled with people working in various creative fields. But when it comes to a TV or film set, one thing remains the same: The director has the final say.
During a 2019 episode of Watch What Happens Live!, Julianne revealed she was fired from the film Can You Ever Forgive Me? because she and original director Nicole Holofcener disagreed on their vision for the main character, Lee Israel. Apparently, Julianne wanted to wear a prosthetic nose and a fat suit in order to bring the character to life. After being fired, Nicole eventually stepped down as well. She was replaced by Marielle Heller, who cast Melissa McCarthy in the lead role.
6.Chadwick Boseman
Before his untimely death, Chadwick conquered every role that came his way. From Lincoln Heights to Black Panther, he left a lasting impression on audiences around the world. But one role in particular had Chadwick questioning everything.
During his 2018 Howard University commencement speech, Chadwick opened up about getting fired from All My Children (his first credited role) after disagreeing with the racial stereotypes his character was perpetuating. Chadwick lasted one week in the role before being replaced by his Black Panther costar Michael B. Jordan. Michael would go on to play the character for three years.
7.Anne Hathaway
Did you know Anne was originally set to star in Judd Apatow's Knocked Up? But there was one scene they just couldn't agree on.
Anne really wanted Judd to cut that unforgettable child birthing scene, or at least make it a little less graphic, but Judd wasn't willing to budge, and unfortunately, it cost Anne the role. Katherine Heigl went on to star in the highly successful comedy and Anne continued making strides in her notable career.
"My issue with it was that having not experienced motherhood myself, I didn't know how I was gonna feel on the other side about giving birth," Anne told Allure. "And by the way, I could pop a kid out and think, 'Oh, well, I really should have done that movie.'"
But there were no hard feelings — according to Anne, Judd made the right choice.
8.Natalie Portman
We can all agree that Romeo + Juliet is a classic, but did you know Natalie was originally cast to star alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in Baz Luhrmann's adaptation? While Natalie's departure from the film is listed as being a mutual decision, it was initially sparked by 20th Century Fox, who believed she looked too young for the part of Juliet. Natalie was 13 at the time, while Leo was 21.
"Fox said it looked like Leonardo DiCaprio was molesting me when we kissed," Natalie told The New York Times.
"It was a complicated situation and ... at the time I was 13 and Leonardo was 21 and it wasn't appropriate in the eyes of the film company or the director, Baz. It was kind of a mutual decision too that it just wasn't going to be right at the time," she said in a later interview. "It was really disappointing, but I wouldn't have wanted to be in the movie and have it look wrong."
Natalie was later replaced by Claire Danes, who was 17.
9.Ryan Gosling
The beautiful thing about art is that it can be interpreted in so many different ways, because it's so subjective. But when it comes to a director and their project, their interpretation holds the most weight.
And when Ryan was offered the role of grieving father Jack Salmon in Peter Jackson's The Lovely Bones, the two got their wires crossed. Ryan thought it would add to the character's depressed state if he gained weight. Ryan showed up to set 60 pounds heavier, weighing in at 210 pounds. Unfortunately, Ryan didn't discuss this weight change with Peter first, and Ryan was ultimately replaced with Mark Wahlberg.
10.Holly Hunter
Believe it or not, the lead character of Chicken Little was originally supposed to be a girl! Back when the titular role was female, Holly Hunter was cast. But Michael Eisner, the former chairman and CEO of Disney, wasn't feeling it.
"I don't want [Chicken Little] to be a girl, I want it to be a boy," producer Randy Fullmer told Collider.
So, they got rid of Holly, and Zach Braff ultimately ended up voicing the animated poultry.
11.Jenny Slate
You can get away with a lot on Saturday Night Live. Break character? Sure! Make fun of the sitting president? Why not? But the one thing you can't do is curse. Unfortunately, Jenny missed the memo. During her first appearance on the show, Jenny accidentally dropped the F-bomb on live television, which resulted in her being fired at the end of the season.
"Lorne and I never talked when I was fired at the end of the season; I got the news online. I've still never watched the clip of my f--- up. That'd be like watching yourself fall down the aisle at your wedding! I feel like it happened to somebody else, and I want to tell her, 'Oh, girl. I'm so sorry, but you need to move on,'" Jenny told Glamour.
12.Colin Firth
In the 2014 film Paddington, Colin Firth was actually tapped to voice the lovable bear. But after he finished recording the entire film, it was later determined that he sounded "too old" for the character. Colin was eventually replaced with Ben Whishaw, who re-recorded all of the scenes.
13.Lastly, Chloë Grace Moretz
When Chloë was 11, she nabbed the voice role of Penny in the animated movie Bolt. She even recorded the entire film! But Disney ultimately decided to go with a more notable actor to star in the film — their very own Miley Cyrus. But Chloë's work wasn't completely done in vain. They left in Chloë's voice as the younger version of Penny in the film.
