TV Shows That Actors Refused To Be A Part Of

By their very nature, TV shows get viewers comfortable with the idea of certain actors playing certain characters. Whether it's 22 half-hours of a sitcom or 13 hours of a cable drama, spending so much time with a performer who's inhabiting a specific role makes it hard to imagine anyone else taking on those parts. That's especially true when the actor is amazing at portraying their character. Could anyone else have played Walter White like Bryan Cranston on Breaking Bad? Ditto Elizabeth Montgomery as Samantha on Bewitched? It's impossible to comprehend anyone else taking on those parts.

But while these actors seem tailor-made for their roles after hours of viewing, the inherent process of casting means that these stars were rarely the first choice for their characters. As it turns out, many of the original picks just flat-out refused to be part of TV shows that would end becoming some of the most iconic programs of all-time. Though it may sound preposterous to turn down those series with the benefit of hindsight, a multitude of reasons informed these actors and their decisions to walk away. 

Sometimes, salary disputes kept certain performers at bay, while other times, it was as simple as an actor being uncomfortable performing on television. Whatever the issues, there are endless examples of famous faces decidedly saying "no" to some of the most beloved TV shows of all-time.

Nowadays, when people think of Natasha Lyonne and television, they probably think of her unforgettable lead role in the TV show Russian Doll. Or perhaps they think of her work as Nicky Nichols in Orange Is the New Black. Perhaps some even associate her with her childhood acting role as Opal on Pee-Wee's Playhouse. While Lyonne has inhabited many memorable TV characters, her portfolio could've been all the more impressive if she'd ended up taking on the famous TV role of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

The first mention of Lyonne consciously passing on an opportunity to appear in the TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer came all the way back in 2000, with her reasoning being a desire to focus on smaller-scale projects. Of course, the matter didn't just end there. Since Lyonne never specified what part she turned down, speculation ensued on who Lyonne could've played. After more than a decade of guessing, the truth finally came out in 2013. Lyonne made an offhand comment to Entertainment Weekly (via HuffPost) about how her mother said she should've done Buffy before making a joke that revealed she'd been offered the titular role herself. 

While Sarah Michelle Gellar made for a widely beloved vampire slayer, Lyonne's track record for playing TV characters you can't turn away from makes it impossible not to wonder what the Russian Doll lead could've done headlining Buffy.

Ray Liotta's biggest film role is Henry Hill, the gangster protagonist in Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas. That part has forever associated Liotta with tough guys and mobsters, and he's played plenty of them over the years in movies ranging from Wild Hogs to Killing Them Softly. He had another chance to explore this territory when he was offered a part on The Sopranos. Today considered one of the greatest TV programs ever made, it would've seemed like a no-brainer for Liotta to extend his penchant for playing gangsters over into this series, especially since Sopranos already made use of so many Goodfellas actors like Michael Imperioli and Lorraine Bracco.

However, Liotta turned down a chance to be a part of this beloved TV program. This wasn't due to concerns over typecasting but rather worries about how much time it would to take to be on the program. "It was for a two-year commitment, and I didn't really want to give up that time now," Liotta said in 2001, with his intent apparently being to concentrate on appearing in movies. While he opted not to be a part of the Sopranos TV show, that doesn't mean Liotta has been locked out of the franchise forever. As it turns out, Liotta plays a part in the Sopranos prequel movie, The Many Saints of Newark, bringing this staple of the modern gangster genre into the Sopranos franchise at long last. 

The chemistry between the four lead ladies was crucial to making Sex and the City a phenomenon. However, there almost was an entirely different dynamic between the cast members of this show, given that Dana Delany was almost cast in Sarah Jessica Parker's role of Carrie Bradshaw.

Delany has opened up about her decision in recent years, and she attributed the move to ensuring she didn't get stuck in a rut as a performer. "I had done a movie called Live Nude Girls with Kim Cattrall that was somewhat similar. It was women sitting around talking about sex," Delany explained to Irish Central. "[Sex and the City creator] Darren Star was a friend of mine ... and he asked if I'd be in it. ... I had just done Nude Girls and Exit to Eden, and I just said to Darren, 'I cannot do a show with sex in the title.' People will lynch me if I do one more thing about sex."

Delany's decision allowed the eventual rapport between the four leads of Sex and the City to flourish. Plus, we've got to think that Parker is pretty appreciative that Delany passed on the program.

No matter how many Oscars he gets nominated for or dramas he appears in, Steve Carell will always be Michael Scott. He goes as perfectly with the role as Jim does with Pam. But initially, Carell wasn't set to play the part. Back when the American version of The Office was first getting off the ground, a number of other actors were considered for the character. Everybody from Philip Seymour Hoffman to Bob Odenkirk was considered for the part that would provide the anchor for the entire program.

Among those actors in contention to play Michael Scott was Paul Giamatti. In fact, the Sideways performer was outright offered the role of the Dunder Mifflin boss. Giamatti's entire demeanor as an actor is totally different than Carell's, meaning we nearly got a radically unique take on Michael Scott. However, viewers never got to see it since Giamatti turned the role down. Reportedly, this was due to Giamatti's hesitance to perform in television, which does line up with how Giamatti almost exclusively appeared in movies in the 2000s. 

One exception to this was the prestige HBO program John Adams. However, that historical drama was only a seven-episode commitment, whereas The Office had individual seasons running between 22 and 24 episodes. That kind of lengthy commitment led to Giamatti turning down The Office and paving the way for Carell to take on his most iconic character.

Lost is a show famous for its twists and turns, including ones that make about as much sense as a polar bear showing up on a tropical island. Perhaps more shocking than anything that happened in the show, though, is that one of the lead characters of the program was originally supposed to be played by a movie star. The character of Jack wasn't always meant for Matthew Fox. In fact, the first pick for the role was actor Michael Keaton, who was initially excited to be a part of Lost. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Keaton explained that he was originally signed on to the role because Jack was supposed to die at the end of the pilot episode. Intrigued by a show killing off what seemed to be its lead character at the end of a pilot, Keaton hopped on board.

Of course, given that Keaton is nowhere to be found in the actual show, something changed after Keaton signed on. The problems emerged when producers changed their mind on their long-term plans for Jack. As the series got reshaped, the producers of Lost decided that killing off Jack was no longer in the best of in the show. With Jack set to be a regular for the entire program, well, in the words of Keaton himself, "That didn't interest me." Keaton left, and Fox ended up taking on the role for the landmark program.

In his career as an actor, Paddy Considine has largely acted in films and TV shows that are incredibly grounded, with minimal forays into the highly stylized. He hasn't entirely eschewed genre fare, as seen by his notable presence in projects like "The World's End" or "The Outsider." But more often than not, he's quite comfortable acting in productions that are all about emphasizing normal human beings navigating everyday scenarios, like "Pride," rather than resurrected dinosaurs. However, that norm was upended when Considine took on the role of King Viserys in "House of the Dragon," a TV show packed with dragons and other trappings of fantasy storytelling.

Considine wasn't always so open to working with the world established by George R.R. Martin, though, and was actually approached years ago to be in the original "Game of Thrones" TV show, though he never even seriously considered it. The actor recalled to The Sunday Times that he was sent the script for "Game of Thrones," but upon seeing that it was a fantasy program, he dismissed it so quickly that he never even read the scripts he was given. Of course, "Game of Thrones" went on to become a pop culture phenomenon that defined what kind of success a TV show could secure. Needless to say, Considine didn't hesitate to break away from his usual grounded acting choices when the chance to headline "House of the Dragon" came around.

Lil Nas X has already done a lot in his music career after breaking out with the 2019 global hit, "Old Town Road." The artist told Variety, though, that his ambitions as a creative extend far beyond just being a musician. Lil Nas X shared his aspirations of being an actor,  looking to the likes of Lady Gaga as a blueprint for how a singer can leap into the world of acting. While expressing these aspirations, Lil Nas X revealed that he'd already had one brush with a potential acting gig: a role of unknown size in the second season of "Euphoria."

It's easy to see why Lil Nas X would be attracted to a project like "Euphoria." Both he and that HBO program are well-known for pushing buttons and explicit material, but more importantly, there's also an emotional rawness to Lil Nas X that would fit like a glove in "Euphoria." A tune like "Sun Goes Down," an unflinching portrait of coming to terms with one's queerness while experiencing the slings and arrows of adolescence, is a great extension of the show's willingness to tackle hard issues relevant to teenagers. However, Lil Nas X passed on the opportunity to appear in "Euphoria" due to his desire to focus solely on his album "Montero" released in late 2021. Even with this reveal, though, Lil Nas X still expressed hopes for appearing in a third season.

"The Walking Dead" wasn't just another TV show acting gig for Jon Bernthal. It turned out to be a turning point in his career, one that put him on more people's radars than ever before. Since his time on that show, Bernthal's been able to parlay "The Walking Dead" popularity into further roles ranging from playing The Punisher in a series of Marvel and Netflix shows to appearing in movies directed by filmmakers like Martin Scorsese, James Mangold, and Steve McQueen. However, his career could've gone in a wildly different path if Bernthal had ended up headlining a CBS procedural rather than showing up on "The Walking Dead."

In 2012, Bernthal revealed to The Hollywood Reporter that he turned down a chance to be on "NCIS: Los Angeles" as one of its series regulars just so he could audition for "The Walking Dead." Bernthal's comments indicate that he didn't have something against that "NCIS" spin-off per se, it's just that he was so committed to being on the AMC series that he didn't want another project to take up his time and energy. In hindsight, the lengthy time commitment of shooting a show like "NCIS: Los Angeles," which produces seasons that typically run for over 20 episodes each, could've also prevented Bernthal from taking on all the exciting roles he secured after his beloved stint on "The Walking Dead."