Acting is not only about fame, big money, and thanking your family at the Oscars. Even if an actor has scored a promising role, it does not automatically mean that they will not be fired in a couple of weeks due to some outlandish or completely justified reason.
Here are nine famous actors who got shafted while the movie was still filming.
1. Anne Hathaway — Knocked Up
Initially, she accepted the role in this silly movie, but after a while, Anne refused to shoot more scenes. You should also know that the director was using a body double, and Anne would not show off any of her skin. Okay, technically, she quit, but let’s not get into semantics.
2. Christian Bale — American Psycho
Before becoming the best psycho, Christian Bale had to actually be fired first. You see, when Leonardo DiCaprio became interested in the script, there was no room for Bale or the director Mary Harron. But DiCaprio decided to go for a cold swim instead and chose to play Jack in the Titanic. After that, Bale was back on the table.
3. Harvey Keitel — Apocalypse Now
The protagonist, Captain Benjamin Willard, in Apocalypse Now was initially supposed to be played by Harvey Keitel, but after two weeks of filming, Coppola was very unhappy with the result, and Keitel got shafted. Thank goodness Martin Sheen was available!
4. Charlie Sheen — Two and a Half Men
Charlie Sheen, the highest-paid American television actor at the time, was fired from “Two and a Half Men” for self-destructive behavior. Charlie dabbled in alcohol and drugs, was always late, and constantly fought with producers. After being fired, his place in the series was taken by Ashton Kutcher.
5. Selma Blair — Anger Management
Blair, who played Charlie Sheen’s girlfriend, Kate Wales, in Anger Management, was fired after complaining to the management about Sheen’s inappropriate behavior. However, the producers decided to take Charlie’s side and flushed Selma down the drain.
6. Samantha Morton — Her
The voice of Spike Lee’s operating system in “Her” was originally supposed to belong to Samantha Morton. But Lee didn’t think she was doing the AI justice with her plain acting, so he fired Morton and instead hired Scarlett Johansson.
7. Robert Downey Jr. — Home for the Holidays
In the 1990s, Robert Downey Jr.’s name was more often associated with scandals rather than successful roles. So, this one time, he was temporarily booted from the movie “Home for the Holidays,” and he had to undergo treatment for drug and alcohol addiction and even spend 16 months in prison. Eventually, he did finish the movie.
8. Lindsay Lohan — The Other Side
Lindsay Lohan is another actress whose fame (or infamy) mainly comes from scandals rather than movies. In 2010, she was removed from the cast of “The Other Side” because director David Michaels decided that Lohan’s name would alienate potential audiences. It’s 2021, and the movie is still in pre-production, meaning it’s probably never going to see the light of day.
9. Ryan Gosling — The Lovely Bones
Peter Jackson fired Ryan Gosling on the set of “The Lovely Bones” due to differences of opinion on what his character should be in the film. Jackson did not like that the actor gained weight, believing that his character is supposed to be around 95 kg. Ryan was promptly replaced by Mark Wahlberg, but even Marky Mark couldn’t save this trainwreck.
