After we've watched a movie, it can be difficult to imagine the film as a project that took months or years to finally culminate into the product we see at the theater or on our television.
But it was built and hacked together, piece by piece.
First, it was an idea, then maybe a sketch in a journal, then some dialogue made it to paper. Eventually, it was written, money was raised from a production studio, and a crew was hired.
And of course, actors were cast to portray the role.
Often, we leave the film unable to imagine anybody else playing the characters we just witnessed. What once only existed as a script, stuck in the world of words, has become forever connected to flesh and blood people.
Sometimes, though, those flesh and blood human actors feel so misaligned for the characters they're meant to play that we can conceive of the film before it was acted and shot.
And frankly, we can see where they went wrong.
666Fu**ThEwOrLd666 asked, "What actor/actress was completely 100% wrong for the role?"
Sometimes it comes down to physical or personal essence. Especially when the film adapts source material like a book or well-known story, audiences have a very clear image of characters in their heads.
Upending those images can be a disappointing shock.
Leadership Evaluation
"Colin Farrell as Alexander The Great. As one of my old University professors once said, 'I wouldn't follow that guy to the end of my DRIVEWAY.' " -- thecyberbard
"You can't talk about Oliver Stone's Alexander without mentioning that the mad man has 4 different directors cuts of the film" -- Preparation_Asleep
Too Cool
"Joel McHale as Roy in the ill-fated US remake of The IT Crowd."
"We want a scruffy and misanthropic IT nerd, so let's get an actor known foorrr... charisma and confidence? OK."
-- lucklater
Lean, Yes, All the Others? Not At All
"Why the fu** was Jessie Isenberg cast as Lex Luthor of all fu**ing things"
"All depictions of him are of a tall, bald, and lean businessman"
"No disrespect for the actor, I'd take such a high paying job too, but whoever thought of casting him is a clown"
-- Iperovic
What Could Have Been
"Two that come to mind but weren't cast were in Lord of the Rings. Sean Connery was offered the role of Gandalf but turned it down because he couldn't understand the script."
"Could you imagine how bad of a casting decision that would have been now that we've seen Sir Ian McKellen in the role? Or Nicolas Cage as Aragorn?"
-- joshuabeebe
Shrunken Jack
"Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher. Reacher's supposed to be 6+ feet tall, 240+ pounds, basically a brick sh**house of a man. And someone pulling the strings said yeah, that totally sounds like Tom Cruise to me!" -- sandrodi
"Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher. If you've read the book he is the exact physical opposite of the character as written." -- gardengnome15
Other casting decisions verge on the problematic. White people are cast to play non-White characters and figures.
The result feels ethically icky and just plain bewildering.
How Was That Necessary
"Jon Voight as a snake hunter in Anaconda is fine......but him as a PARAGUAYAN snake hunter?.....just......why lol" -- birdperson_012
"Because he learned his accent from his maid. Who was probably not even from Paraguay."
"Fun movie, but he was ridiculous in it" -- shaft6969
Not the Face I Picture
"John Wayne as Genghis Khan (The Conqueror). That is just wrong on so many levels, I don't know where to start." -- ceallaig
" 'Hello TARTAR WOMAN. I AM TIMOGEN...pilgrim' " -- Skrivus
Others not only criticized a casting decision as it happened, but proposed their own alternative. These fans had full confidence in their grasp of the character.
Just a Tease
"Jafar in the new Aladdin. He wasn't believable or menacing and way too young."
"Plus for much of his screen time he's standing next to Navid Neghaban, who would have been a MUCH better choice."
-- Larrik
A Clear Alternative
"Kevin Hart as Roland in the upcoming Borderlands movie. Everyone who knows anything about Borderlands will agree with me."
"Terry Crews should be playing Roland. He's big, has comedic chops, and can play the no-nonsense straight shooter BADA** when everything else is wild."
-- Dekklin
Missed Opportunity
"The actress who played Jene Grey in the new X-Men movies. She couldn't carry the role at all and it really dulled the Dark Phoenix storyline."
"It's a damn shame because they had Jessica Chastain in the movie and she would have been excellent cast as Grey/Phoenix."
-- mkjones
Unfortunately, we'll be dealing with poor casting decisions like this for as long as movies continue to be made.
The confluence of the big name actors of the day and the films produced in that same moment can tend to stick square pegs into circular holes.
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