17 Massive Hit Shows That Almost Had Very Different A-List Casts

Millie Bobby Brown in Game Of Thrones? Nicola Coughlan in Stranger Things? Gillian Anderson in Downton Abbey? They all could have happened…

For many of us, there is no greater comfort than rewatching our favourite shows – to the point that those familiar characters can begin to feel like close friends.

Because of this, it can be near impossible to imagine anyone else but the line-up of actors we know and love appearing in these series.

However, what you might not know, no matter how many times you have binge-watched them, is that some of the most popular shows in TV history almost had a very different cast.

With that in mind, we’ve rounded up 17 hit shows that almost had completely different A-list stars in their casts...

Elizabeth Olsen, Millie Bobby Brown, Sam Heughan and Mahershala Ali all didn’t make the cut for Game Of Thrones

It sometimes felt like every actor in the world was in Game Of Thrones, but there are a few famous faces who didn’t make the cut, after auditioning for roles in the fantasy drama.

In 2021, Elizabeth Olsen told The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast that she auditioned for the part of Daenerys in Game Of Thrones, but didn’t get a callback for the role which made Emilia Clarke a global household name.

“I auditioned for, like, the assistant to the casting director in a small room in New York with just a camera on me and them reading the script,” she claimed. “I was doing the Khaleesi speech when she comes out of the fire. It was awful.”

Another A-lister who claims they “blew” their Game Of Thrones was Mahershala Ali. The two-time Oscar winner auditioned for the part of Xaro Xhoan Daxos, a merchant in Qarth, during season two, telling Jimmy Kimmel that it was the “worst audition of his life”.

Outlander star Sam Heughan, meanwhile, had multiple chances to appear on Game Of Thrones, auditioning to play Loras Tyrell, Renly Baratheon and several members of the Night’s Watch, but never landing any of them.

“I’d always get so close! I’d be like, ‘Guys, just give me a sword!’,” he told Vulture in 2014, lamenting: “Everyone was going in for those parts.”

Lastly, Millie Bobby Brown’s failure to land the role of Lyanna Mormont in the fantasy drama almost led her to quitting acting before her career had even taken off.

“I was auditioning for commercials, anything really,” the British star told Jimmy Kimmel in 2020. “I then auditioned for Game Of Thrones and I got a no for that. That’s kind of when I was like, ‘Oh, this is really difficult’.”

The role of Lyanna eventually went to Bella Ramsey, who now stars in The Last Of Us (and will next be seen in the upcoming season of The Celebrity Traitors).

Despite being one of the biggest shows of the 21st century, a long list of other actors also turned down roles in Game Of Thrones.

Hunger Games actor Sam Claflin dropped out of the audition process for Jon Snow after being offered a major movie role.

Despite the show’s success, he doesn’t regret this decision, telling Cinema Blend: “I like getting into things like that [as a viewer] and not being a part, because I always find it’s very jarring if I was part of it. But I’m a big fan.”

Gillian Anderson also rejected an unspecified role in the show, telling the Daily Mail back in 2013: “If I am going to be spending that amount of time working on something, I would rather be working with a director like Martin Scorsese.”

Succession actor Brian Cox turned down the role of Robert Baratheon, complaining in 2016 to Vodzilla that the show wouldn’t pay him enough, a complaint he later regretted.

“Now they have more money,” he continued. “And I was silly. I was silly, it was silly, because I’m a complete addict now.”

In his memoir, Putting The Rabbit In The Hat, Brian wrote: “There’s always been a tendency of American productions to treat British actors differently from American actors,” he said. “In other words, to get them cheap.”

The Crown star Dominic West was another big name who rejected a role in the fantasy show, admitting he was put off by the prospect of spending six months shooting in Iceland.

Many fans believe the actor was referring to the role of Mance Rayder, the King Beyond the Wall, which eventually went to Ciarán Hinds.

“It was a lovely part, a good part. I’m going to regret it,” he told HuffPost in 2012. “My problem is, I’ve got four kids, and at the moment, I’m reluctant to be away from home for a long time.”

Lily Allen quite rightly turned down the role of playing Yara Greyjoy, alongside her real-life brother Alfie Allen, who starred as Theon Greyjoy.

“They asked me if I’d be interested in playing Theon’s sister,” Lily claimed during a Reddit “Ask Me Anything” session.

“I felt uncomfortable because I would have had to go on a horse and he would have touched me up and shit. Once they told me what was entailed, I said, ‘no thanks’.”

Jennifer Lawrence, Lily Collins and Dakota Johnson all auditioned for Gossip Girl

Gossip Girl creator Josh Schwartz has revealed that a then-16-year-old Jennifer Lawrence auditioned to play Serena van der Woodsen, the role which launched Blake Lively to fame.

“We did not realise this at the time, but Jennifer really wanted to play Serena and auditioned,” he told Vulture in 2018.

“This story came to us secondhand – but we were told she definitely auditioned and was bummed to not get it.”

Lily Collins auditioned for the show, too, with the hopes of playing Taylor Momsen’s character, Jenny.

She........

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