Casting Replacements That Damaged The Actor's Career

Casting is a key ingredient in the secret sauce of great filmmaking and television: match the right actors to the right roles, and everything else can fall into place. In the best cases, a certain performer filling a certain character's shoes can turn a part into a franchise-leading phenomenon (Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow), or a walk-on role into a movie's best element (Bill Murray in "Caddyshack"). But the real magic is in synergy, when several actors click — there's no "X-Files" without David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson, and what would the original "Star Wars" movies have been without Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford together?

For these same reasons, sometimes an actor's got to go. There are nightmare tales of difficult performers, but even the most demanding stars can still get, and keep, their roles. For an actor to be replaced usually means there's a deeper issue — the right tone just isn't coming across, no matter what the director does with the scene. It's awful for the would-be star who watches the role they lost end up being part of a massive hit while their replacement reaps the rewards — and it's just as bad for the actors who willfully walk away from the role of a lifetime, never to be heard from again. Here are casting replacements that damaged the actor's career.

"Back to the Future" was always a zany concept: a time-traveling DeLorean unites an '80s teen with his teenage parents in the 1950s, and shenanigans ensue. It went on to become a defining comedy of the decade, and turned lead actor Michael J. Fox into a superstar — but Fox's performance itself took a bit of messing with the timeline, since he wasn't the original Marty McFly. In fact, Eric Stoltz had already shot weeks' worth of footage in the role before director Robert Zemeckis fired him. The reason, apparently, was that while Stoltz could bring weight and gravitas to a drama, he just couldn't match the comedic energy needed for a concept as screwball as "Back to the Future."

The production essentially had to restart from scratch, since Marty McFly is in nearly every scene of the film, but the final result became a sensation. But even after he was fired, it's possible that the brief diner fistfight between Marty and bully Biff Tannen is actually composed, at least in part, of footage from Stoltz's performance. So Stoltz really is the star of "Back to the Future" — for about four seconds, anyway.

Fox rocketed to household name status after "Future," while Stoltz settled into steady work on TV and in indie films. He did get a Golden Globe nomination in 1985 for "Mask," but for all that talent, he never had the star power of a time-traveling DeLorean. True of us all.

When James Cameron set out to write and direct the first "Terminator" film, he was a nobody. Operating on a minuscule budget, he had no choice but to cast up-and-coming actors with no major film credits. Cameron's biggest directorial effort up to that time was "Piranha II: The Spawning," which wasn't exactly a great film, but did feature actor Lance Henriksen. Cameron liked Henriksen, and envisioned him as the titular cyborg — but then along came an Austrian bodybuilder named Arnold Schwarzenegger, who'd just come off playing the lead character in "Conan the Barbarian." With his sheer physical presence, he was the obvious choice to play the Terminator.

Cameron didn't forget about Henriksen — he cast him as a detective in "The Terminator," and in his later action epic "Aliens," he'd call on him to play the android Bishop. But in every way, "The Terminator" was Schwarzenegger's movie, and it vaulted him into the upper echelon of the decade's action stars. For a time, there could be no bigger name than Schwarzenegger's atop a film. Henriksen, meanwhile, has stayed busy over the years, albeit in the types of character actor roles that don't spawn catchphrases or multi-million-dollar sequels. Schwarzenegger's charisma is singular, so it's not clear that portraying the Terminator would have given Henriksen the same career. But we'll never get to find out.

Quentin Tarantino is one of the most meticulous craftsmen in the business: he writes his own scripts, and he knows exactly how he wants to shoot them. As a master of both dialogue and tension, Tarantino knows that a scene must be tuned with perfect precision — including casting. Even while making his first film, "Reservoir Dogs," Tarantino displayed an expert eye for matching dialogue to actors. Michael Madsen turned in a memorable performance as Mr. Blonde, so when Tarantino began filling out the roster for his follow-up feature "Pulp Fiction," he wanted Madsen back.

Madsen was delighted by the offer, but unfortunately, was forced to turn it down in favor of a part in Kevin Costner's Western "Wyatt Earp." It probably made sense at the time: Costner was an established star, whereas Tarantino was still an indie filmmaker. In Madsen's place, John Travolta was cast as Vincent Vega.

It was exactly what Travolta needed: he earned an Oscar nomination and a second wind for his career. "Wyatt Earp," meanwhile, went nowhere. Madsen has an impressive slew of credits to his name, but has never attracted the type of fame or acclaim Travolta enjoyed post-"Pulp." At least, however, he still has Tarantino: Madsen can be seen in several of the director's films, including "Kill Bill" and "The Hateful Eight."

Megan Fox was still largely unknown when she was cast in the lead female role in Michael Bay's 2007 film "Transformers," based on the cartoon and toy line from the 1980s. The film was a huge box office hit, and Fox herself went on to become a worldwide star. Her return in the 2009 sequel, "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," cemented her status as one of blockbuster cinema's hottest new sex symbols. There was nowhere for her to go but up.

Until it all came crashing down. Fox was unceremoniously fired from the third film, "Transformers: Dark of the Moon." Initially intended to return, she was thrown out for being too difficult to work with, and for her criticism of Bay himself. While new lead actress Rosie Huntington-Whiteley technically took on a brand new character, this was still the girlfriend of Shia LaBeouf's hero — effectively the same role.

Fox's career has never been quite the same since. Her most high-profile outings have been in the rebooted "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" series, Judd Apatow's "This is 40," and a recurring role on Seasons 5 and 6 of "New Girl"; otherwise, she hasn't seen many starring roles in films, blockbuster or otherwise. The "Turtles" series was produced by Bay, suggesting that their relationship was repaired, but that hasn't done much to nudge her back into stardom. Sometimes, it isn't just being replaced that damages your career, it's the reasons why.

Harrison Ford was one of the true megastars of the 1980s, thanks in large part to starring roles in two of the decade's biggest franchises: "Star Wars" and "Indiana Jones." The latter is, in many ways, Ford's own personal franchise. More than four decades after the original "Raiders of the Lost Ark," 2023's "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" still featured an aging Ford as the archaelogical action hero.

So it may come as a bit of a surprise that originally, Ford wasn't meant to play the part. Producer George Lucas had already worked with Ford on "American Graffiti" and "Star Wars" and wasn't interested in doing so a third time, so Tom Selleck was offered the part. Unfortunately for Selleck, he'd landed two roles simultaneously: not only Indiana Jones, but also the lead in the CBS TV show "Magnum, P.I." The network refused to let their new star delay filming in order to shoot "Raiders," and Selleck was forced to turn down the job.

In fairness, "Magnum, P.I." was a huge hit show and made Selleck a TV star, but it never really led to a big-screen bounce for him. Ford, meanwhile, continued to lead dramatic and action movies for decades, and Indiana Jones remains one of cinema's most beloved adventure heroes. "Magnum" was a good show, and Selleck has done others, but his star could have been far brighter if he'd worn a fedora.

Marvel Studios wanted to make a thunderous impact with its new cinematic universe back in 2008, and set out to employ a few big names for its debut feature "Iron Man." One of the first to sign up was actor Terrence Howard, who'd been nominated for an Academy Award a few years earlier for his performance in "Hustle and Flow." He was cast as James Rhodes, an Air Force pilot and best friend of Tony Stark, who in the comics eventually becomes an armored hero himself named War Machine.

Though Howard didn't suit up in "Iron Man," the clear implication was that he'd get his shot in the sequel. But any plans to do so were scrapped when the studio attempted to slash his fee for "Iron Man 2," and the actor refused to budge in negotiations. Marvel responded by simply firing him, bringing in "Ocean's 11" star Don Cheadle — and Howard later said that his ousting all but destroyed his career.

Howard would eventually rebound — starring in the HBO drama "Empire" beginning in 2015 — but there's no denying that his movie career took a massive hit after missing out on "Iron Man 2." Cheadle, meanwhile, went on to play Rhodes in a pair of "Iron Man" sequels, and reprised the part in "Captain America: Civil War," two "Avengers" movies, and three Disney+ series. He's also slated to take the lead in his own Marvel movie, "Armor Wars."

Thanks to her breakout role as inmate Stella Carlin in Season 3 of Netflix's "Orange is the New Black," Ruby Rose's future on the screen looked bright. She subsequently took roles in some hot action blockbusters, including "xXx: Return of Xander Cage" with Vin Diesel, "John Wick 2" with Keanu Reeves in 2017, and "The Meg" with Jason Statham the following year. In 2019, she was ready to take the lead and signed up to star in the title role of The CW's highly publicized TV spin-off, "Batwoman," after guest starring as the character in other Arrowverse shows.

Though audiences were less bullish, "Batwoman" debuted to good reviews from critics, and Rose herself acquitted herself well in the role of Kate Kane. When Season 2 rolled around, though, Rose dropped a bombshell by announcing that she was departing her own series, claiming it was a mutual decision on the part of herself and the studio. A year after being replaced by Javicia Leslie, though, Rose claimed she'd suffered abuse on the set and levied some pretty serious allegations at producers.

Whatever the real case was, however, the end result was a big hit to her career. Since leaving "Batwoman," she hasn't fronted her own series nor been cast in any big Hollywood projects, mostly appearing in poorly-received, low-budget, direct-to-streaming action movies.

Initially a quasi-sequel to the 1968 thriller "The Detective," 1988's "Die Hard" evolved into its own action movie, leading producers to look for a big name to play the film's disillusioned cop, John McClane. In addition to established movie stars, the studio also looked at big names from the small screen, eventually settling on "Moonlighting" star Bruce Willis. He wasn't the first choice, though, because Don Johnson of "Miami Vice" fame was offered the role first. 

For whatever reason, Johnson passed and Willis stepped in, eventually leading what is now considered one of the best action movies of all time. From there, Willis all but put TV behind him, and was one of the biggest box office draws of the 1990s, starring in "Pulp Fiction," "12 Monkeys," "Armageddon," and "The Sixth Sense," while also reprising the role of McClane in four "Die Hard" sequels. 

Johnson, meanwhile, continued on "Miami Vice" through 1989, but his career stalled out from there. He'd make a comeback in 1996 with his TV series "Nash Bridges" — which lasted a strong six seasons — but he never did find the blockbuster movie success that his replacement Bruce Willis did thanks to "Die Hard."

Along with the likes of "Breaking Bad" and "Mad Men," the FX crime drama "Sons of Anarchy" helped usher in a wave of prestige TV drama in the late 2000s, and Charlie Hunnam was at the center of it all. He starred for seven seasons on "Anarchy" as Jax Teller, head of a dangerous motorcycle gang, and became a genuine international sex symbol with a mix of bad boy charm and rugged good looks. During the show's run he'd already taken a shot at the silver screen, starring in "Pacific Rim," and when "Anarchy" ended it seemed that nothing would stop him.

A few failures, however, cut him down to size. This included the disastrous attempt at a cinematic universe in "King Arthur: Legend of the Sword" and an ill-advised remake of "Papillon." But he almost had a chance to assert his box office dominance when he was offered the role of Christian Grey in the controversial adaptation of the erotic novel "Fifty Shades of Grey." 

Despite his enthusiasm for the film, Hunnam had to leave the project due to scheduling conflicts. He was quickly replaced by Jamie Dornan, and it's a moment that Hunnam admitted has haunted him ever since. While he's starred in interesting films like "Crimson Peak," "The Lost City of Z," and "Triple Frontier," he's still never found a project that's been as successful as "Fifty Shades."

In the late 1980s through the 1990s, Christina Applegate was a TV sitcom star, appearing as bratty, obnoxious teen Kelly Bundy in "Married... with Children." During the show's 11-season run, Applegate tried her hand at moving into the movies but didn't have much success, starring in disappointments like "Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead," "Vibrations," and a bit role in the Tim Burton flop, "Mars Attacks!" In 2001, she was offered the lead in the comedy "Legally Blonde," but perhaps due to her spotty track record and the apparent need to pick her projects more carefully, Applegate hesitated, feeling it was too much like her role as flighty Kelly Bundy, and chose not to do the film. 

As we know now, Applegate's decision to pass on the project wound up being a major blunder, because "Legally Blonde" was a massive hit and helped her replacement Reese Witherspoon break out in Hollywood. "I wouldn't toy with the idea of 'Legally Blonde' because it felt too fresh getting out of 'Married... with Children,'" Applegate told Vanity Fair many years later. "It was very similar on paper." Looking back with the benefit of hindsight, the actress eventually concluded that passing on the role of Elle was "a big f***ing mistake." 

A mistake is right, because aside from just the money she could have made, missing "Legally Blonde" shot down her chances at more big movies, as Witherspoon went on to become a box office star.

From "Rocky" to "Rambo," Sylvester Stallone was one of the biggest action heroes on the screen, and in 1993 he went sci-fi for "Demolition Man." There he played a 20th century cop named John Spartan who is cryogenically frozen and unthawed in 2032, where — with the help of a young female officer in the future police force — he must track down a deadly killer from his past. For Stallone's sidekick, the movie cast unknown actress Sandra Bullock, but she was actually a replacement for Lori Petty, who was fired after just two days of shooting.

At the time, Petty was coming off a star turn in the baseball movie "A League of Their Own," and according to Variety, was fired due to "creative differences" with producer Joel Silver. Though Petty did rebound with "Tank Girl" a couple of years later — which became a cult classic in its own right — the bulk of her subsequent career has been in smaller indie films, supporting roles, and television. 

Though she's carved out a nice niche for herself over the years, Petty never did match the heights of Bullock, whose part in "Demolition Man" helped rocket her to fame, leading to movies like "Speed," "The Net," and "A Time to Kill." Bullock remains a superstar some 30 years later, while Petty is left to look back and wonder what might have been had she just gone along with Silver's plans for "Demolition Man."

If you're at all familiar with actor Richard Kiel, it's almost certainly thanks to his role as Jaws in a pair of iconic James Bond films, "The Spy Who Loved Me" and "Moonraker." At a towering 7-foot, 2-inches tall, Kiel was often brought in to play imposing characters like the steel-toothed Jaws, so when "The Incredible Hulk" needed a behemoth of an actor to play the titular Jade Giant, he was the obvious choice. After filming for a few days, however, it became obvious that Kiel's sheer height wasn't enough. Looking for someone with the bulk and mass of the muscle-bound green goliath, Kiel was dismissed and in came bodybuilder Lou Ferrigno.

After joining the series, Ferrigno became synonymous with the character, continuing in the role for all five seasons of "The Incredible Hulk," as well as three subsequent TV movies. He even voiced the character in a 1996 animated series, and returned to provide the big-screen grunts and growls for Marvel's "The Incredible Hulk" in 2008 (with some of his voice work for that film reused in subsequent "Avengers" films).

As for Kiel, he once claimed that he didn't regret losing the part because the experience of shooting the pilot episode of "The Incredible Hulk" was extremely unpleasant for him. Nevertheless, losing the role left him relegated to smaller parts, and while he did manage to appear in a handful of memorable movies, nothing ever made him as famous as Ferrigno's angry green giant. 

In 2008, Paul Thomas Anderson's "There Will Be Blood" received eight Academy Award nominations, winning two — including best actor for Daniel Day-Lewis. The film also turned out to be a turning point in the career of Paul Dano, who played the dual roles of identical twins Paul and Eli Sunday. The roles helped establish him as an up-and-coming star, leading to movies like "12 Years a Slave," and "The Batman." But his career may have turned out very differently had the first actor chosen for the role not been fired just weeks into filming.

That actor was Kel O'Neill, and while rumors persisted that the inexperienced thespian had quit because he'd felt intimidated by Day-Lewis, the truth is far more mundane. Not feeling up to the rigors of the role, O'Neill decided to leave and the producers agreed, paving the way for Dano's introduction into the film. Since then, O'Neill has largely disappeared from acting, with his last on-screen appearance coming in 2010. 

Despite the damage to his career, O'Neill doesn't seem to regret losing out; he felt that acting ultimately wasn't a fit for him, and moved behind the camera to direct "The Empire Project" in 2012. "If [Anderson] hadn't fired me from 'There Will Be Blood," I would probably still be an actor dreaming of making my own films."

One of the biggest sitcom hits of the early '90s, "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" was led by a young Will Smith as the eponymous royal teen in West Philadelphia. For the first three seasons, it was actress Janet Hubert who played his aunt, Vivian Banks, but she was booted from the series thereafter, replaced by Daphne Maxwell Reid. Conflicting stories about Hubert's departure made the rounds, with the actress tossing dirt at network executives who she believed had it out for her.

Smith, however, had a different story, saying that it was actually Hubert's diva-like bad behavior on the set that led to her firing, adding that she wanted the show to be more about her than the title character. He even alleged that she'd referred to him as a "snot-nosed punk" and was mad that he'd gotten his own show while she'd toiled in television for more than a decade. 

Whether it was her attitude or just her exit itself, Hubert struggled to find more regular work in the aftermath, falling into a series of single-episode guest parts on various TV shows including "Dave's World," "Coach" and "The Pretender." It wouldn't be until 2005 that she'd even have a regular role on TV again, this time on the daytime soap "One Life to Live" — far from the network sitcom success she'd once enjoyed more than a decade earlier.

If you're a fan of '80s movies you almost certainly know Debra Winger, who appeared in some of the biggest films that decade. From "Urban Cowboy" and "Legal Eagles" to romantic dramas like "An Officer and a Gentleman" and "Terms of Endearment," she could be seen in hit after hit. The 1990s weren't as good to her, though, and it seems that when the decade had turned over, so too did her career. But if she hadn't walked away from one of the biggest comedies of 1992, it might have been very different.

Cast to play Dottie in "A League of Their Own," Winger actually spent months prepping with the Chicago Cubs to learn the game of baseball. But when pop star Madonna got the role of Mae, Winger balked and quit the film in protest. Despite collecting a paycheck for her work, Winger was out, replaced by Geena Davis — who had just earned an Academy Award nomination for "Thelma and Louise" — and the rest is sports movie history. When all was said and done, "A League of Their Own" collected more than $130 million at the box office, and Davis turned in a Golden Globe-nominated performance in Winger's old role, while Winger herself never starred in a blockbuster film ever again.

Rachel Leigh Cook first gained attention for starring in "The Babysitter's Club" in 1995, before more hit teen flicks brought her to greater prominence. This included leading roles in "All I Wanna Do" with Kirsten Dunst and Gabby Hoffman, and of course her star turn in "She's All That" opposite Freddie Prinze Jr. in 1999. She had a chance to become a true superstar a year later when she was picked by director Bryan Singer to play the outcast mutant teen Rogue in the first "X-Men" film, but she made the blunder of a lifetime by turning down the offer.

Instead of Cook it was Anna Paquin who nabbed the part, and the replacement star would continue to appear in the series for three more films. Paquin turned that fame into a lead role in "True Blood," and 20 years on, Cook's career is hardly much by comparison. Looking back in 2021, Cook called the decision not to play Rogue a "huge misstep," and it's not difficult to understand why. But according to Cook, she was being advised to pick her roles carefully for fear of not being taken seriously.

"I definitely did things for the wrong reasons," she told Insider. Wrong reasons indeed, because the decision to pass on "X-Men" becomes all the more perplexing when you realize she chose to star instead in the box office flop "Josie and the Pussycats."