Cast of an important film The role is never easy, and sometimes the process of finding the best actor for a particular role continues even after production or filming has officially begun. The entertainment industry can often be turbulent, with the typical professional rules of hiring and firing often being thrown out the window in favor of last-minute changes. Some of the most iconic movie castings of all time were often the result of last-minute changes to the call sheet that only come into play long after the first scene has been filmed.
There are many reasons why a film set might make the decision to recast a major character mid-production. In some cases, things like scheduling conflicts create logistical nightmares that are ultimately not worth it, but a director’s artistic vision can sometimes conflict with the final performance given by a previously chosen actor. Tragically, unpredictable events such as professional cancellation or even the death of an actor can complicate production midway, necessitating an unfortunate redesign.
10
Back to the future
Marty McFly Recast
THE Back to the future The films are positively charged by the chemistry between Christopher Lloyd’s Doc Brown and Michael J. Fox’s Marty McFly, creating one of the best mentor-student relationships ever seen on film. This truth extends to the first film, in which Doc Brown and Marty first discover the power of their DeLorean-based time travel machine. This makes it even harder to believe that it was almost someone else who wore Marty’s iconic red vest and futuristic self-lacing sneakers.
Michael J. Fox was indeed the first choice for the role of Marty, but there are scheduling conflicts with his TV series Family ties initially banned him from entering Back to the futureproduction schedule. Eric Stoltz was hired as a second choice, but upon seeing him on set, director Robert Zemeckis couldn’t deny that Stoltz’s serious demeanor didn’t mesh with his vision of Marty. In the end, Zemeckis ensured that Fox’s schedule could be worked around to allow him to star as the one and only Marty McFly, a high-risk creative decision that more than paid off.
9
Paddington
Paddington revamp
Films featuring animated characters often provide an extended window for recasting opportunities to occur, with the final look of a CGI character’s voiceover only being finalized in post-production. As such, it is often only after production has begun that creative decisions can be revisited, even if that means finding a new actor to provide an important voice. Such was the case with Paddington, the adorable and touching story of a furry, talking bear who is adopted by a British family.
Colin Firth was the initial choice for the voice of Paddington, giving him the air worthy of a true English gentleman. However, early drafts did not view this decision favorably, with Firth’s vocal performance seeming too muffled for the fun-loving miser. Firth eventually voluntarily resigned from his position, recognizing that he was not the perfect choice for the lovable ursine bandit. This allowed Ben Whishaw to step in, providing the perfect balance of fun, nervousness and Goldilocks tenderness he carried. Paddington and its beloved sequel.
8
Predator
Rework the Predator
When it comes to the cast of Predator, Iconic names from ’80s action films often come to mind, with the star-studded squad of Carl Weathers, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jesse Ventura making for an unforgettable roster. But the identity of the Predator himself is less of a conversation, even though martial arts film legend Jean-Claude Van Damme was initially set to lend his impressive skills to the fearsome Yautja hunter in the original film.
The then unproven action star signed with Predator hoping this would give him the chance to show off some of Van Damme’s signature martial arts moves, only to discover that the confining suit not only hid his face, but limited his movements. Not only that, but the original Predator costume was suffocatingly hot, causing Van Damme to faint on set. Unhappy with the circumstances of playing the Predator, Van Damme left mid-production, which led to a suitable replacement with 7’2″ Kevin Peter Hall, who killed the alien hunter’s body movements.
7
V for Vendetta
Reformulation V
The Predator isn’t the only iconic character from the masked film who was recast mid-filming. Adapting the famous comic book of the same name by Alan Moore, V for Vendetta sought an actor for the titular V, a masked anarchist vigilante who hunts down the elites of his world’s corrupt British government. Initially, James Purefoy, known as Next, Romeand Altered Carbonit made perfect sense for V, able to flex his penchant for antihero characters in the lead role.
Despite filming the majority of V’s scenes, Purefoy ended up leaving the project mid-production, halting work on V for Vendetta. Although the actor initially cited the uncomfortable nature of the character’s Guy Fawkes mask, Purefoy eventually admitted creative differences in how V should be portrayed were at the center of his departure. While Hugo Weaving took on the role of V, the undercover nature of the character allowed the final cut to retain some scenes where Purefoy is actually the one under the mask.
6
Shrek
Shrek Recast
For fully animated films, recasting a main character may be a little easier than doing the same for a live-action film, but it’s still an incredibly impactful event that can delay production. Over the various Shrek films, the titular onion-loving ogre became a pop culture phenomenon, with Mike Myer’s distinctive Scottish accent exploding into fame along with him. This makes it even harder to believe that the character was actually created with a very different comedic actor in mind, Chris Farley from Saturday night live fame.
Although some close-ups of Farley’s performance as Shrek have been assembled into animation, the lauded comedy darling sadly passed away in 1997, having recorded most but not all of his dialogue for the film. So Dreamworks had to turn to Mike Myers for Shrek, doing an iteration of his developed Scottish accent for his Austin Powers secondary character, Fat Bastard. It’s fascinating to see how different Shrek would have Farley behind the reins of the eponymous ogre, rather than Myers.
5
Panic Room
Meg Altman Recast
A chilling home invasion thriller from the genius mind of David Fincher, Panic Room is a highly regarded star vehicle for Jodie Foster, who plays a well-to-do mother who ends up trapped with her daughter in the sprawling safe room of her new home during a tense robbery. Jodie Foster gives real weight to the character, which could have ended up forgettable in lesser hands. However, Foster wasn’t Fincher’s first choice for Meg Altman, with Nicole Kidman helming the leading lady when production began.
After just two weeks of filming, Kidman aggravated a knee injury she suffered on the set of Moulin Rouge, which turned out to be a pretty serious fracture. Thus, Kidman had to retire from the heavy action role, which led Fincher to replace her with Jodie Foster. Meg’s recast led Fincher to substantially rewrite her character to better fit Foster’s personality, aligning her more closely with her tomboyish daughter, creating a stronger mother-daughter bond and a more compelling film.
4
Army of the Dead
Peters reformulation
An underrated image in Zack Snyder’s filmography, Army of the Dead was filmed during the peak of COVID-19 restrictions following the 2020 pandemic. As such, it’s no wonder the film suffered some substantial production issues, including the recasting of a relatively important character in the zombie film combination and heist movie. Originally, helicopter pilot Peters was played by comedian and actor Chris D’Elia, who had completed filming when the film entered post-production.
Unfortunately for Zack Snyder, some very serious allegations of sexual assault and grooming quickly surfaced regarding D’Elia shortly after filming wrapped. This led Snyder to film replacement scenes, with comedian Tig Notaro taking on the role of the intrepid helicopter pilot. Due to extensive industry restrictions caused by COVID-19 making a genuine remake virtually impossible, Notaro was filmed separately and digitally imposed onto the final product with CGI, retroactively replacing D’Elia’s performance.
3
Her
Recast Samantha
An unconventional love story, Her explores the natural conclusion of finding love in a futuristic world when a lonely young man, played by Joaquin Phoenix, falls in love with an artificial intelligence named Samantha. Being a completely disembodied and incorporeal character, without a humanoid body, Samantha presented an interesting challenge to director Spike Jonze. Getting the right voice for Samantha would be crucial to the film’s success, considering the audience is asked to believe that Phoenix’s Theodore falls in love with her just through conversation.
Unfortunately, after filming ended, Jonze later decided that Samantha’s initial voice, British actress Samantha Morton, was not in sync with his creative vision for the story. This led to Samantha being recast as Scarlet Johansson, who re-recorded every line of the AI ​​program throughout the script. This decision certainly paid off, with Johansson’s sensual tone commonly cited as one of the film’s most alarming strengths.
2
The beautiful bones
Jack Salmon Recast
A little-known entry in Peter Jackson’s excellent filmography The beautiful bones is not the best rated Lord of the Rings director’s work. Adapting the novel of the same name, the supernatural drama tells the story of a girl who is cruelly murdered, only for her spirit to watch as her obsessive father tries to catch her killer in the afterlife, torn between helping him get revenge and allowing let him take revenge. to move forward. Industry darling Ryan Gosling initially took on the role of the aforementioned father, Jack Salmon, even going so far as to appear on set.
Much to Peter Jackson’s chagrin, Gosling had already taken it upon himself to do some permanent character work for Jack Salmon, earning a staggering £60 for the role. Jackson disagreed with this creative decision, made without his consultation, unceremoniously firing Gosling shortly before filming began. After a brief delay, Mark Wahlberg was chosen to take on the role. Perhaps Gosling was on to something and would have been a better fit after all, considering the negative reviews he received for The Lovely Bones.
1
All the money in the world
Recast by J. Paul Getty
Few actors have fallen from grace as much as Kevin Spacey, once an illustrious performer, omnipresent in prestige dramas and taut Hollywood action thrillers. After shocking allegations about Spacey’s sexual misconduct and assault came to light in 2017, most filmmakers wanted nothing to do with him, causing Spacey to miss out on a wide range of future roles. One of these projects, All the money in the worldin fact, it was completely shot after the news broke. The film depicted the real-life kidnapping of billionaire oil tycoon J. Paul Getty’s grandson.
In light of Spacey’s disgusting actions, director Ridley Scott was asked to completely reshoot all of J. Paul Getty’s scenes, bringing in Christopher Plummer as a replacement, who was actually Ridley Scott’s first choice for the role. Although this devastating blow to the production cost more than $10 million, the moral security of removing Spacey from the scene was worth more than the moral security. Not only that, but Plummer’s fresh take on Getty resulted in rave reviews for the finished film, even winning an Oscar for his thoughtful performance.