17 Actors Who Didn’t Give Up On The Part They Wanted And Then They Nailed It

Now we can't imagine anyone else playing those famous roles

Damjan

• Published in Film & TV
• May 18, 2022

Making movies and TV shows is a challenging task, and casting is one of the most important processes. We all believe that famous actors don’t have to audition for parts, but that is a common misconception.

It is true that some roles are actually written with specific actors in mind (the writers had David Schwimmer in mind when writing the role of Ros in Friends), but that is very rare. Almost always, actors have to read the script in front of the moviemakers, even if they are pre-selected for the role.

You can’t blame the producers – even when they have their favorites, there is no guarantee that the actors will actually be able to get into the character. But sometimes, actors know better than the producers.

They can feel the part is right for them and are not afraid to fight for it. We have compiled a list of 17 actors who were not afraid to go after the role they wanted.

And furthermore, they performed magnificently, earning Academy Awards and Golden Globes. Take a look at our list and just try to imagine how different these movies and shows would've been if the actors were not so persistent.

Let's get to it:

Some roles were written with specific actors in mind, like Bill Murray in Lost in Translation.

Coppola reportedly spent a year attempting to hunt down Murray after writing the part for him.

However, some actors had to fight for roles:

1. Lady Gaga - A Star Is Born

Bradley Cooper intended to cast Lady Gaga right away, but Warner Bros. wasn't convinced, so Cooper did some screen tests with her first. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress.

2. Aaron Paul - Breaking Bad

"No one wanted me other than Vince," Aaron told the reporter. "And finally, I mean he just said listen, this is the guy I want, you know, this is my show. He made it happen, thank God."

Paul won three Emmys for the role.

3. Jennifer Lawrence - Winter's Bone

Producers thought Jennifer was too attractive for the part, but she proved them wrong by taking a red-eye flight and arriving without makeup. Lawrence was nominated for her first Academy Award for her performance in the film.

4. Constance Wu - Crazy Rich Asians

Wu was unable to shoot the film since he was engaged filming Fresh off the Boat. However, the character was so essential to her that she wrote director Jon Chu an email stating how much she valued the part, and they ended up rearranging filming dates to accommodate her.

5. Patrick Swayze - Ghost

Director Jerry Zucker had his heart set on Harrison Ford for the part, and Swayze had to fight for it after falling in love with the script. Swayze's performance became legendary.

6. Whoopi Goldberg - Ghost

Patrick Swayze campaigned to have Goldberg cast against director Jerry Zucker, who preferred Tina Turner. Goldberg went on to win an Academy Award.

7. Winona Ryder - Heathers

Winona's own agency begged her not to take the role in the dark comedy, and Daniel Waters thought Ryder wasn't attractive enough to play Veronica. Ryder, on the other hand, praised the script, claiming it was the "best work of fiction since Catcher in the Rye."

"No one has ever loved a piece of writing more than Winona Ryder loved the script of Heathers," screenwriter Daniel Waters stated. The movie went on to become a cult classic, propelling Ryder to fame.

8. Marlon Brando -The Godfather

Francis Ford Coppola had to beg the studio for a screen test for The Godfather with Marlon Brando. Coppola placed some objects in front of Brando, who instantly applied shoe polish to his hair and shoved tissues into his lips to get the mob boss's signature appearance and speech style.

During the screen test, he also made a phone call in character. The video was well-received by the studio, which allowed him to be cast in possibly his most famous part.

9. Dev Patel - Lion

Patel stated that they had misgivings about him since they just recognized him as the guy from Slumdog Millionaire and wanted someone new and different. He stated that he needed to go in and prove himself, which only increased his desire for the part.

For his role in the film, he received Oscar and Golden Globe nominations.

10. Kate Winslet - Titanic

Kate Winslet called James Cameron and told him he'd be crazy if he didn't cast her in Titanic. Her performance earned her Oscar and Golden Globe nominations.

11. Dave Bautista - Guardians of the Galaxy

Dave Bautista was cast in Guardians of the Galaxy after James Gunn fought for him. Bautista described his audition as a "horror," claiming that his agency had to battle for it since they didn't want a professional wrestler.

12. Lisa Kudrow - Friends

Lisa Kudrow recalled having to "battle" for the role of Phoebe, having auditioned for director James Burrows several times. She received six Emmy nominations for her performance, winning one.

13. Taylor Lautner - Twilight: New Moon

Lautner was still a scrawny teen in the first film and played a minor role; it was thought that he would be replaced in the sequel. Lautner, on the other hand, spent months bulking up before persuading director Chris Weitz that he could play the muscular character.

14. Ryan Reynolds - Deadpool

Ryan Reynolds had little trouble landing the role of Deadpool in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, but he had to work hard to get a solo Deadpool film done – the process took 11 years.

15. Reese Witherspoon - Legally Blonde

To get the part of Elle, Reese Witherspoon was advised she needed to be sexier. The studio chief apparently thought Reese was a "shrew" after seeing her in Election.

She was instructed to dress sexily, and she even went to an audition dressed up to prove she earned the position.

16. Lili Reinhart - Riverdale

Reinhart had to audition multiple times for the job, claiming that she couldn't get it perfect in her video audition and that she didn't receive the part until she auditioned in person.

17. Mahershala Ali in True Detective

The role was originally meant for a white male, according to Ali. He was offered a supporting role, but battled to be cast as the main character, sending showrunner Nic Pizzolatto images of his grandfather, who, like the character, was a state police officer.

He eventually persuaded Pizzolatto that his plot would be better served by having a Black protagonist and that the show could tackle racism in Arkansas in 1980.

With all of the flash and glam, movies are filled with riddles that beg to be solved. Even gaining a peek behind the scenes at how casting decisions are made can whet your appetite and make you want more.

Just imagine, if things had gone just a little differently in our favorite movies, the landscape would have been drastically different. It is not just what you see on the screen- the backstories are even more interesting.

Damjan