10 “What If” Movie Castings That Would Have Completely Changed Hollywood

Some of the characters in the best movies of all time were meant to go to someone other than the actors who are now incredibly famous for playing them. The casting process is typically extensive with directors and producers considering many possibilities. And actors are not always able to take on the roles they want because of scheduling issues. They may also turn down movies because they dislike the tone or message of the story.

That is to say, the odds of a director getting their first choice to play the lead character are actually very slim. But would the movie have been a success without the second choice for the lead star? Fans can’t imagine anyone other than Sigourney Weaver as Ripley, Jodie Foster as Clarice, or Harrison Ford as Han Solo. If they had not starred in these roles, their respective movies might not have had the same impact, and the actors would not have landed future roles – and the course of Hollywood history would be drastically different.

10 John Travolta As Forrest Gump

Forrest Gump (1994)

Few characters played by Tom Hanks rival the fame of Forrest Gump. However, the role of Forrest Gump was offered to John Travolta first. Interestingly, Hanks seems like the more sensible pick for the kind-hearted protagonist. At the time, Hanks was most famous for Big and Sleepless in Seattle, while Travolta was known for Grease and Saturday Night Fever. While Travolta may have lost the Oscar to Hanks, 1994 was by no means a disappointment for him. Travolta made an undeniable impact on Hollywood that year by starring in Pulp Fiction.

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9 Sissy Spacek As Princess Leia

Star Wars (1977)

Sissy Spacek was among the many actresses considered to play Princess Leia. Ironically, Carrie Fisher was also considered for the lead role in Carrie, which ultimately went to Spacek. Both movies were career-defining moments for the young actresses. The course of Hollywood history would have been different if both Fisher and Spacek had been sent down different career trajectories. Fans can only speculate if Spacek would have found the same success as Fisher playing the headstrong space princess instead of a shy teenager who turns out to be viciously vengeful, and vice versa.

8 Sean Connery As Gandalf

The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring (2001)

It is widely believed that Sean Connery was Peter Jackson’s first choice to play the wise wizard Gandalf the Grey in the Lord of the Rings movies, while Anthony Hopkins was also considered. Producer Mark Ordesky reportedly said (via The Independent), “We did make an offer to Connery but he said no. We never got an answer until years later, but apparently he read the material and just didn’t get it.” However, Ian McKellen’s ability to portray a terrifying yet gentle character cannot be matched. McKellen called his role as Gandalf “the job of a lifetime”.

7 Matthew Modine As Maverick

Top Gun (1986)

Matthew Modine turned down Top Gun for political reasons, not wanting to be associated with what he saw as a positive depiction of the U.S. Military and war in general. Val Kilmer wanted to turn down the movie for the same reasons, but was already contractually bound to appear. Modine was the first choice to play the cocky fighter pilot Maverick, who turned out to be one of Tom Cruise’s most famous roles.

While Cruise was making Top Gun, Modine starred in Full Metal Jacket, a movie with more anti-war sentiments. Top Gun sent Cruise down the path of more intense, physically demanding roles. Cruise is also now famous for his over-the-top stunts in the Mission Impossible movies.

6 Tom Selleck As Indiana Jones

Raiders Of The Lost Ark (1981)

Harrison Ford became famous when he took on not one but two iconic roles in the late 70s and early 80s. However, Tom Selleck was supposed to be Indiana Jones, but was forced to drop out due to scheduling conflicts with Magnum P.I. George Lucas then contacted Ford about Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher never appeared in another major franchise after Star Wars and were subsequently type cast based on their most famous characters. However, Ford was lucky enough to demonstrate some genre variety early on and would be considered for a wider range of future roles. Today, he has starred in everything from the drama thriller Witness (for which he earned an Oscar nomination) to the Jackie Robinson biopic 42. Ford even thanked Selleck for the opportunity via People.

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5 Marilyn Monroe As Holly Golightly

Breakfast At Tiffany’s (1961)

Among Audrey Hepburn’s most famous roles is Holly Golightly, the scheming yet lonely protagonist of Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Nonetheless, the source material’s author Truman Capote was a friend of Marilyn Monroe and wanted the Gentlemen Prefer Blondes star to play Holly. However, Monroe took the advice of her acting coach, who believed that the role was bad for her image.

Capote reportedly said, “Paramount double-crossed me in every way and cast Audrey” (via Far Out). Both Hepburn and Monroe are famous for scores of other roles from both before and after 1961. While Breakfast at Tiffany’s is doubtlessly influential, Hepburn still would have been a Hollywood icon without it.

4 Michelle Pfeiffer As Clarice Starling

The Silence Of The Lambs (1991)

Before Jodie Foster, the role of FBI agent Clarice Foster was offered to Michelle Pfeiffer. Yet the movie was too dark or Pfeiffer.

“There was such evil in that film,” Pfeiffer told The New Yorker. “The thing I most regret is missing the opportunity to do another film with Jonathan [Demme]. It was that evil won in the end, that at the end of that film evil ruled out. I was uncomfortable with that ending. I didn’t want to put that out into the world.”

Yet Silence of the Lambs arrived in theaters anyway. The movie was a career-defining moment for Foster and introduced one of the most famous villains ever to Hollywood. However, it would have been interesting to see Pfeiffer’s take on Clarice, especially because of how she felt about the overall story. She might have pushed to make Clarice a more hopeful character.

3 Will Smith As Neo

The Matrix (1999)

Will Smith and Keanue Reeves are both among the biggest action stars of all time. And possibly the most infamous moment of Smith’s career was his choice to turn down playing Neo in The Matrix for the flop Wild Wild West. At the time, Smith was “riding high off the success of Independence Day, he thought he couldn’t do any wrong and even initially declined Men in Back” (via Entertainment Weekly). He met with the Wachowskis with the same mindset and passed on the role.

However, Smith’s career recovered and some of his most famous roles were still ahead of him. Meanwhile, The Matrix cemented Reeves as an action star, leading to him starring in other famous action movies, namely the John Wick franchise. While Smith is “not proud of [Wild Wild West],” he does not appear to regret his choice. “Keanu was perfect, Laurence Fishburne was perfect” says Smith in a YouTube video. “So I probably would have messed The Matrix up. I would have ruined it, so I did y’all a favor.”

2 Meryl Streep As Ripley

Alien (1979)

Ellen Ripley is certainly Sigourney Weaver’s most famous role, yet Meryl Streep was also considered to play the sole survivor of the Nostromo crew. When it came down to Weaver or Streep, Ridley Scott and casting director Mary Goldberg were ready to offer the role to Streep. However, after the death of Streep’s partner John Cazale, the decision was made to offer the role to Weaver and allow Streep time to grieve. Had Streep starred in Alien, it could have set the most acclaimed actress in Hollywood down a path which included more action movies.

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1 Al Pacino As Han Solo

Star Wars (1977)

Before taking a chance on an upstart, George Lucas considered a much more famous actor to play the rougish captain of the Millennium Falcon. “You know what happens when you first become famous,” says Al Pacino (via Variety). “It’s like, ‘Give it to Al.’ They’d give me Queen Elizabeth to play.” However, Pacino didn’t understand the script and passed on the role. And so Han Solo ended up launching another actor to fame. “I gave Harrison Ford a career,” says Pacino. Today, Star Wars fans wouldn’t have anybody other than Ford as Captain Solo.