With news of Henry Cavill leaving The Witcher after Season 3 and Liam Hemsworth replacing him, fans have petitioned for Cavill’s return as the legendary monster hunter. While it remains to be seen whether the petition will prove successful or that Hemsworth will excel in the role, fans were skeptical of Cavill’s initial casting. He quickly quelled those doubts.
This isn’t always the case, however. Some casting decisions were never a good idea from the beginning, such as John Wayne playing Genghis Khan in The Conqueror or Keanu Reeves trying to do a British accent in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Reddit is full of bad casting opinions, but it’s important to note that this isn’t an indictment on the actors themselves.
Topher Grace – Venom
Spider-Man 3 (2007)
There were many problems with Spider-Man 3, and one of them was casting Topher Grace as Venom. As Redditor glokazun puts it: “He’s not scary at all. Especially when he’s screaming in agony. I’m just thinking to myself…this is bad”.
Eddie Brock was always physically imposing, which made him a worthy challenge for Spider-Man. Topher isn’t threatening (even after becoming Venom), whereas Tom Hardy’s adaptation of Venom is. Topher came off as whiny at times, rather than sympathetic. As per Far Out, Topher even doubted he was right for the part, as the studio forced Venom into the movie. When the actor of the character has doubts about being cast, it was probably not a good idea to cast them in the first place.
Maria Bello – Evelyn O’Connell
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008)
The Mummy franchise contains some of Brendan Fraser’s highest grossing films, surprisingly including Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. The film was one of the worst in the series, likely due to the recasting of Evelyn “Evie” O’Connell.
Maria Bello replaced Rachel Wiesz (due to script issues) and, as a deleted Reddit user suggests, “it would’ve been better to say Evelyn died”. Bello and Fraser’s chemistry felt naturally off, as it wasn’t as strong as it was between Wiesz and Fraser. It seemed as though Bello was trying too hard to imitate her predecessor, which made her performance awkward and out of place. Since Evie is arguably too important a character to kill off-screen, more time should’ve been spent to perfect the script so that Wiesz would’ve stayed on, thus eliminating the need for a poorly received reboot.
Russell Crowe – Javert
Les Misérables (2012)
Les Misérables was a popular musical among critics and audiences alike. However, the weakest aspect of the film seemed to be Russell Crowe as police inspector Javert.
Redditor Fogel87767 states that “He just can’t sing as well as the other cast members. Especially in a movie that is a musical”. This is a valid point. It’s not that Russell Crowe can’t sing – it just seems that way when being compared to actors like Anne Hathaway and Hugh Jackman. Because Crowe’s singing isn’t up to his fellow actors’ level, it diminished Javert’s threat. In a musical, it’s important to cast an actor that can sing on the level of their contemporaries, so that performances won’t be judged too harshly.
Jared Leto – Paolo Gucci
House of Gucci (2021)
Jared Leto has had some great roles, but Paolo Gucci is one of his most head-scratching. Because House of Gucci was somewhat of a disappointment, Leto’s miscasting stuck out even more so.
“He was horrendous and made the character into a real life Mario character” argues Redditor SneakyKillz. Paolo did resemble a real-life Mario, yet the worst part is that Leto furthered many Italian-American stereotypes through his delivery of dialogue and mannerisms. Because Leto played Paolo more as a cartoon character rather than a sympathetic human being, it was hard to root for him or feel bad when he is betrayed by Patrizia. This decrease in seriousness led to an increase in unintended humor.
Jai Courtney – Kyle Reese
Terminator: Genisys (2015)
The Terminator series is a great action franchise, but that doesn’t mean action stars should be cast in every role. Jai Courtney as Kyle Reese in Terminator: Genisys was a questionable casting choice, according to Redditor ghostofkilgore.
“He’s supposed to be this traumatized underdog who uses his wits alone to go up against the might of the Terminators”. It doesn’t make sense to cast a muscular actor like Courtney because there wouldn’t be muscular survivors in an apocalypse. A muscular Reese also diminishes the threat of the Terminators (this is why Micheal Biehn’s Kyle Reese worked so well). More importantly, Courtney had no chemistry with Emilia Clarke’s Sarah Connor, which is problematic due to them having to fall in love with each other. Courtney had a flat delivery of his lines, therefore the audience didn’t care if he saved the world or not.
Kristen Stewart – Snow White
Snow White And The Huntsman (2012)
Snow White is one of the most notable fairy tale characters of all time, and Universal Pictures believed they nailed the casting. However, MaddenRob begs to differ.
Being named Snow White and the Huntsmantook the focus away from Snow White and emphasized the Huntsman, which might’ve worked if there wasn’t such a disparity between actors. Chris Hemsworth has a natural charisma about him, something that Kristen Stewart lacked. Much like in Twilight, she seemed very stoic in the role, with a blank expression on her face most of the time. Since this Snow White adaptation was more action-packed, a different actress with experience in the action genre would’ve been better suited to work in tandem with Hemsworth.
Cameron Diaz – Jenny Everdeane
Gangs of New York (2002)
Gangs of New York is one of Cameron Diaz’s best movies, but Redditor alienanimal feels that Diaz wasn’t part of what made Martin Scorsese’s film great: “She’s not bad, but can’t match DiCaprio and Daniel Day Lewis”.
Diaz suffered a similar issue that Russell Crowe dealt with in Les Misérables – they were outshone by surrounding actors. As great of an actor as Daniel Day Lewis is, Leonardo DiCaprio was able to hold his own. Diaz tried to hold her own, yet it seemed as though she needed more preparation. She either emoted too much or not enough, making her character Jenny frequently feel out of place. Jenny lacked believability because of it, and as a result, she became an afterthought rather than the cherry on top.
Mark Wahlberg – Elliot Moore
The Happening (2008)
Mark Wahlberg’s performance in The Happening certainly made the film feel more like a comedy rather than a thriller. Redditor crnelson10 believes that no casting choice could’ve improved the movie, saying “I couldn’t believe for a second that Wahlberg was just a dorky science teacher trying to survive”.
The biggest issue with this casting is that Wahlberg didn’t get a firm grasp of the character. He played just what was on the page as opposed to exploring the depths of the character, something that an actor more suited to the role would do. Wahlberg had a confused look on his face throughout the movie. It didn’t help that his delivery on lines such as “What? No…” and “Just let me think for a minute” were comical. It can’t all be attributed to Shyamalan’s direction, as John Leguizamo had a solid performance. Wahlberg isn’t known for playing roles like this, and it showed.
Tom Cruise – Jack Reacher
Jack Reacher (2012)
Tom Cruise has starred in dozens of action films, but that doesn’t mean he’s right for every one of those roles. Size is a big part of Reacher’s character, and this is where GunnerGitcha takes issue: “I lost my s*** with that decision”.
Tom Cruise is 5’7 and Reacher is supposed to be 6’5. While using certain camera angles and tricks can make one look taller than they really are, it’s difficult to make someone look almost a foot taller. Just because he was a big-name action star, doesn’t mean that Cruise was born to play the role. His demeanor, line delivery, and fighting style didn’t accurately fit the character. Cruise was too much of a screen presence (the opposite of Reacher himself) so a lesser-known actor like Alan Ritchson is a natural fit. These are just a few reasons why Alan Ritchson Is A Better Jack Reacher Than Tom Cruise in Amazon’s Reacherseries.
Jesse Eisenberg – Lex Luthor
Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
Redditor kenthels doesn’t feel that Jesse Eisenberg fits the role of Lex Luthor in Dawn of Justice, and even gave a suggestion on who should’ve played Superman’s arch-nemesis. The Redditor nominates Bryan Cranston, adding “they cast the wrong berg, should’ve been Heisenberg”.
The problem with Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor is that he didn’t fit the tone that Zack Snyder was going for. Eisenberg played a goofy Luthor, which completely contradicted the dark tone of the film. But that goofiness wasn’t consistent, as he was more serious in scenes with Superman. This inconsistency made it hard to get a feel for the character and his motivations. Jesse’s attempt to make the character resemble Heath Ledger’s Joker became cringy, as it was so out of character.
