Stars who passed on roles that later won Oscars

Casting can change movie history.

Some actors say yes to the role that wins them an Oscar. Others pass on a part that later becomes legendary. Sometimes the reason is scheduling. Sometimes the script does not feel right. Sometimes the actor cannot connect with the character. And sometimes, Hollywood simply moves on.

Let’s looks at actors who reportedly turned down, passed on, or were strongly considered for roles that later won Academy Awards for someone else. Some of these stories are confirmed in interviews. Others come from long-running Hollywood reporting.

1. John Travolta turned down Forrest Gump

John Travolta reportedly turned down the title role in Forrest Gump.

Tom Hanks took the part and won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance. The movie also became one of the defining films of the 1990s. Travolta later had his own major comeback with Pulp Fiction, but Forrest Gump remains one of the most famous “what if” casting stories in Oscar history.

2. Michelle Pfeiffer passed on The Silence of the Lambs

Michelle Pfeiffer was reportedly offered the role of Clarice Starling in The Silence of the Lambs.

She passed on the film, and Jodie Foster took the role. Foster went on to win the Academy Award for Best Actress, while the movie became one of the rare films to win the major Oscar categories, including Best Picture.

Pfeiffer has said in interviews that the material felt too dark for her at the time.

3. Gene Hackman turned down Hannibal Lecter

Gene Hackman was reportedly attached to The Silence of the Lambs before stepping away from the project.

Anthony Hopkins later played Hannibal Lecter and won Best Actor for a performance that lasted only a limited amount of screen time but became one of cinema’s most famous villain portrayals.

4. Julia Roberts turned down Shakespeare in Love

Julia Roberts was once attached to Shakespeare in Love.

The project later moved forward with Gwyneth Paltrow, who won Best Actress for playing Viola de Lesseps. The film also won Best Picture, making this one of the most famous examples of a role changing hands before Oscar success.

Roberts, of course, later won her own Oscar for Erin Brockovich.

5. Anne Hathaway left Silver Linings Playbook

Anne Hathaway was originally linked to Silver Linings Playbook.

Jennifer Lawrence eventually took the role of Tiffany Maxwell and won the Academy Award for Best Actress. Reports have long suggested that Hathaway left the project before filming, and the role became one of Lawrence’s defining performances.

6. Mark Wahlberg passed on Brokeback Mountain

Mark Wahlberg has said he was uncomfortable with parts of the Brokeback Mountain script and passed on the film.

Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal eventually starred in the movie. While neither won for the film, the role of Ennis Del Mar earned Ledger an Oscar nomination, and the movie won several Academy Awards, including Best Director for Ang Lee.

7. Leonardo DiCaprio passed on Boogie Nights

Leonardo DiCaprio reportedly turned down the role of Dirk Diggler in Boogie Nights.

The role went to Mark Wahlberg and became one of his breakout performances. The film did not win an acting Oscar, but it became a major awards-season film and earned multiple Oscar nominations.

For a strict “Oscar-winning roles” article, I would skip this one. For a broader “roles that became award-season classics” article, it works.

8. Richard Gere passed on Wall Street

Richard Gere was reportedly considered for the role of Gordon Gekko in Wall Street.

Michael Douglas took the part and won the Academy Award for Best Actor. Gordon Gekko became one of the most quoted characters of the 1980s, especially because of the famous “greed is good” speech.

9. Tom Selleck missed Raiders of the Lost Ark

Tom Selleck was the first choice for Indiana Jones but could not take the role because of his Magnum, P.I. commitment.

Harrison Ford took the role and became forever linked with the character. This was not an Oscar-winning acting role, though Raiders of the Lost Ark won multiple technical Academy Awards.

10. Emma Watson passed on La La Land

Emma Watson was reportedly linked to the role of Mia in La La Land.

Emma Stone eventually starred in the film and won the Academy Award for Best Actress. Watson has explained that timing and commitments around Beauty and the Beast were part of the issue. The Independent recently included La La Land among Oscar-winning roles that were not originally headed to the final actor.

11. Bette Midler turned down Misery

Bette Midler reportedly turned down the role of Annie Wilkes in Misery.

Kathy Bates took the role and won the Academy Award for Best Actress. The performance became one of the most famous horror-thriller roles ever recognized by the Academy.

12. Barbra Streisand passed on Klute

Barbra Streisand reportedly turned down Klute.

Jane Fonda took the role of Bree Daniels and won the Academy Award for Best Actress. The film became one of Fonda’s signature dramatic performances and a key title in 1970s American cinema.

13. Jane Fonda turned down Network

Jane Fonda has been linked to the role of Diana Christensen in Network.

Faye Dunaway eventually played the character and won Best Actress. Network became one of the sharpest media satires in film history, and Dunaway’s performance remains one of her defining roles.

14. Mel Gibson passed on Gladiator

Mel Gibson reportedly turned down the role of Maximus in Gladiator.

Russell Crowe took the part and won the Academy Award for Best Actor. The film also won Best Picture, making it one of the biggest Oscar success stories of the early 2000s. Gladiator won five Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Crowe.

15. Liam Neeson passed on Lincoln

Liam Neeson was attached for years to play Abraham Lincoln in Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln.

He later stepped away, and Daniel Day-Lewis took the role. Day-Lewis won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance, giving him one of the most acclaimed roles of his career.

Neeson has said that he eventually felt he was no longer right for the part.

16. Russell Crowe turned down The King’s Speech

Russell Crowe was reportedly considered for the role of King George VI in The King’s Speech. Colin Firth took the role and won the Academy Award for Best Actor. The movie also won Best Picture.

17. Paul Newman passed on The French Connection

Paul Newman was reportedly among the actors considered for Popeye Doyle in The French Connection.

Gene Hackman took the role and won Best Actor. The movie also won Best Picture. This is one of those casting stories where several actors were reportedly considered before the final choice was made.