Due to extremely problematic tastes in Hollywood throughout its history, some movie casting choices haven’t aged well. This makes it difficult to watch some otherwise great movies today. The most controversial castings in movies allowed some of the greatest movie performances of all time — Heath Ledger as the Joker is the optimal example. However, this was a surprising casting choice based on Ledger’s past roles, not a case of outright whitewashing that somehow passed at the time.
A few contested choices were simply due to doubts about an actor being suited to play a particular character, and as their career went in another direction, it became clear that it was one of the worst movie casting choices in Hollywood. However, the worst examples are generally of someone being cast as a minority that they do not belong to. Especially with recent movies that claim to be promoting the stories of marginalized people, they really should have given someone from that demographic the chance at a Hollywood career.
10 John Wayne As Genghis Khan
The Conqueror (1956)
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Luckily for him, John Wayne is primarily remembered for his Westerns, which also haven’t aged well in various ways. Meanwhile, The Conqueror is widely considered Wayne’s worst movie and one of the worst movies of all time, in which the Western icon plays the historical Mongol leader Genghis Khan. Despite this, The Conqueror did relatively well at the box office at the time of release. However, even Wayne came to admit that he was not right for the lead role.
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Wayne agreed to play Genghis Kahn because he saw the movie as a kind of Western, and reportedly claimed the role against the advice of the director. While the movie, in general, is not good, the rampant whitewashing is what hasn’t aged well from a historical accuracy or cultural misappropriation standpoint. At this time in Hollywood, roles like Genghis Khan and Cleopatra would be given to white actors like Wayne and Elizabeth Taylor without a second thought.
9 Andy Serkis As Supreme Leader Snoke
Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)
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Casting Andy Serkis as the CGI character is standard practice, and is typically guaranteed to work out, given his legendary performances as Gollum and Caesar. However, Snoke was badly underused as a villain in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, and the entire conception of the character feels like it is trying to garner goodwill from Serkis simply being in the movie. It was never possible for Serkis to give another chilling performance as Snoke when he had hardly any meaningful dialogue.
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7/10 Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens PG-13ActionAdventureFantasy Sci-Fi
Set 30 years after Star Wars: Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, Star Wars: The Force Awakens teams new heroes Finn (John Boyega), Rey (Daisy Ridley), and Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) with Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher), who is now a General in the Rebel Alliance. Together they try to track down Luke Skywalker while battling the First Order, led by the villainous Kylo Ren. The Force Awakens is the first Star Wars film to be produced by Disney and was directed by JJ Abrams.
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*Availability in US Director J.J. Abrams Release Date December 17, 2015 Writers Lawrence Kasdan , J.J. Abrams , Michael Arndt Cast Daisy Ridley , John Boyega , Oscar Isaac , Harrison Ford , Mark Hamill , Carrie Fisher , Adam Driver , Andy Serkis , Lupita Nyong’o , Max Von Sydow , Peter Mayhew , Simon Pegg Runtime 136 Minutes
Meanwhile, Serkis joined the select number of actors who played multiple characters in the same franchise when he was cast again as Kino Loy in Andor and blew everyone away with his performance. Serkis is one of the great actors in this age of movies and TV. However, the character he was given in the Star Wars movies was the producers trying to leverage his fame without doing their part, which has only become more evident since Andor.
8 Jared Leto As Rayon
Dallas Buyers Club (2013)
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Both Jared Leto and Matthew McConaughey took home Oscars for their performances in Dallas Buyers Club, depicting the true events of AIDS patients searching for alternative forms of treatment. The movie was widely acclaimed and nominated in 2013 and 2014, and is still arguably one of Jared Leto’s best movies. However, Leto being cast as a trans woman was criticized by some at the time and his portrayal has only gotten worse as gender-nonconforming actors get more work in Hollywood.
Journalists Fallon Fox and Steve Friess made strong arguments against Leto’s casting and performance, both in TIME.
The criticisms that did arise in the early 2010s did not hinder Dallas Buyers Club‘s path to success. However, journalists Fallon Fox and Steve Friess made strong arguments against Leto’s casting and performance, both in TIME. Fox “wasn’t interested in Leto’s acting capabilities” and “just couldn’t understand why another film had been created with a trans character that had no trans actor in that role.”Friess argued that the depiction of Rayon was highly stereotyped, “[showing] how little [liberals in Hollywood] understood or empathized with the lives of a minority they imagine they and Leto are honoring.”
7 Kevin Costner As Robin Hood
Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves (1991)
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Kevin Costner’s performance as Robin Hood is one of the most criticized in Hollywood history, especially for an actor who has led a successful career otherwise. An Entertainment Weekly article published in 1991 about problems during production demonstrates that, even then, they knew the movie wasn’t going to age well. Costner and director Kevin Reynolds reportedly struggled with how such a “quintessentially American actor” should approach portraying the quintessentially English folklore hero.
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Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991) PG-13ActionAdventureDrama
In Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Kevin Costner stars as the legendary English folk hero who returns from the Crusades to find his homeland oppressed by the Sheriff of Nottingham, played by Alan Rickman. Directed by Kevin Reynolds, the film follows Robin Hood as he leads a band of outlaws to fight against injustice and restore peace. The movie also features Morgan Freeman as Azeem and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio as Maid Marian.
Director Kevin Reynolds Release Date June 14, 1991 Writers Pen Densham , John Watson Cast Kevin Costner , Morgan Freeman , Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio , Christian Slater , Alan Rickman Runtime 143 Minutes
Costner’s accent has been mocked endlessly, even after Reynolds told him to give up on attempting an English accent because it was distracting. After Reynolds returned to his regular fare in movies and TV, it underscored that he was not right for the role. Costner can do an accent, just not an English one — although an unfavorable review of Yellowstone (via Paste) points out that “Everyone in Montana does not have a Southern accent.”
6 Jennifer Lawrence As Katniss Everdeen
The Hunger Games (2012)
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At the time she was cast as Katniss in The Hunger Games, there was some discussion about Jennifer Lawrence perhaps being too old for the 16-year-old role. Of all the young actors who rose to fame during the YA dystopia era, Lawrence arguably had the steadiest career afterward. However, Lawrence being cast younger has an interesting dissonance with discussions surrounding her career now, with her constantly being cast as significantly older characters. Angelica Florio calls this (via Bustle): “Industry sexism. For a female actor to get truly meaty roles, she has to portray older women, not ones her own age.”
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10/10 The Hunger Games PG-13ThrillerActionAdventure Sci-Fi
The Hunger Games is the first of four in the action-drama movie series based on the novels by Suzanne Collins. Set in a dystopian world where people are separated into twelve districts to maintain order, this first film in the franchise focuses on Katniss Everdeen as she is forced to participate in The Hunger Games: a draconian gladiatorial survival event where there can be only one winner.
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*Availability in US Director Gary Ross Release Date March 12, 2012 Writers Gary Ross , Suzanne Collins , Billy Ray Cast Liam Hemsworth , Jeffrey Wright , Natalie Dormer , Josh Hutcherson , Julianne Moore , Elizabeth Banks , Robert Knepper , Donald Sutherland , Woody Harrelson , Jennifer Lawrence , Jena Malone , Philip Seymour Hoffman Runtime 142 minutes Expand
Furthermore, people have argued that Katniss should have been cast as a person of color or different ethnic background as she is described as having “dark hair” and “olive skin” in the books. Lawrence did an excellent job as Katniss, but in retrospect, her casting feels like a safe choice rather than the best one. Lawrence was already on her way to a successful career with one Oscar nomination at the time, while The Hunger Games could have been more impactful with a younger, lesser-known lead actress to better illustrate the series’ biggest tragedies.
5 Eddie Redmayne As Lili Elbe
The Danish Girl (2015)
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Two years after Dallas Buyers Club, Hollywood went down the same problematic route with Eddie Redmayne being cast as the lead in The Danish Girl. Tom Hooper’s acclaimed movie fictionalizes the lives of artist couple Lili Elbe and Gerda Wegener and their relationship through Lili undergoing one of the first gender-affirming surgeries. Again, this gave rise to some controversy at the time surrounding the role of Lili not going to a trans actress.
Redmayne later said to IndieWire: ”
No, I wouldn’t take it on now […] I made that film with the best intentions, but I think it was a mistake.
“
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The Danish Girl rBiographyDrama
Based on the life of Danish painter Lili Elbe, The Danish Girl stars Eddie Redmayne as Elbe, who as a trans woman in the 1920s was among the first individuals to receive gender-affirming surgery. The film chronicles Lili’s transition, assisted by her wife and fellow artist, Gerda Wegener. Alicia Vikander, Ben Whishaw, Sebastian Koch, and Amber Heard also star.
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*Availability in US Director Tom Hooper Release Date November 27, 2015 Writers Lucinda Coxon Cast Eddie Redmayne , Sebastian Koch , Emerald Fennell , Amber Heard , Matthias Schoenaerts , Ben Whishaw , Alicia Vikander Runtime 119minutes
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Also again, this did little to prevent The Danish Girl from going to the Oscars, where Redmayne was nominated for Best Actor in a Lead Role and Alicia Vikander won Best Actress in a Supporting Role. Especially noteworthy in this case is how Redmayne said in 2021 that he regrets making The Danish Girl. Redmayne said to IndieWire: “No, I wouldn’t take it on now […] I made that film with the best intentions, but I think it was a mistake.”
4 Mickey Rooney As Mr. Yunioshi
Breakfast As Tiffany’s (1961)
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Also the result of an outdated modality for Hollywood, white actor Mickey Rooney was cast as Holly Golighty’s upstairs neighbor, a Japanese photographer, in Breakfast at Tiffany’s. In addition to this mere fact of yellow face, Rooney’s performance as Mr. Yunioshi is almost nothing but outrageous, offensive stereotypes. Namely, Rooney wears fake buck teeth and speaks with an exaggerated, comical accent. Rooney was probably cast in the movie due to his fame, but the way the character is written is bad no matter who plays him. It was only made worse because it was Rooney.
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8/10 Breakfast at Tiffany’s pg-13ComedyDocumentaryDramaRomance
Breakfast at Tiffany’s is a romantic comedy film by director Blake Edwards and is based on Truman Capote’s 1958 novella. The 1961 film stars Buddy Ebsen, Audrey Hepburn, Patricia Neal, and George Peppard. The plot revolves around Holly Golightly as she falls in love and the trials and tribulations that come along with it.
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*Availability in US Director Blake Edwards Release Date October 6, 1961 Writers Truman Capote , George Axelrod Cast Audrey Hepburn , George Peppard , Patricia Neal , Buddy Ebsen , Martin Balsam , José Luis de Villalonga Runtime 115minutes
Regardless, Breakfast at Tiffany‘s was widely praised and became a staple of Hollywood history and Audrey Hepburn’s career. Rooney’s reaction to the gradually mounting criticism of the role is also awful; it seems like he knew he was safe in the industry for a long time before offering some kind of apology. According to the Wall Street Journal, in an article published shortly after Rooney’s passing:
“Six years ago [in 2008], after four decades of stolidly defending the role, even Rooney himself finally expressed some regrets, stating in an interview that if he’d known so many people would be offended, ‘I wouldn’t have done it.'”
3 Sean Connery As Juan Sánchez-Villalobos Ramírez
Highlander (1986)
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Highlander is just a weird movie with astoundingly low ratings, but it still became a cult classic. Connery’s immortal character supposedly hails from Ancient Egypt, but has a Latin name and speaks with a Scottish accent. It seems like it is trying to imbue the story with some kind of stereotyped mysticism by claiming Egyptian origins for him. However, the whole thing becomes even more disconnected from reality when the immortals are infamously said to be from another planet in the sequel.
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Highlander RActionAdventureFantasy
Connor MacLeod, born in 16th century Scotland, is one of a few immortals who can only be killed by beheading. Now, in 1985, the immortals who have survived their centuries-long secret war meet in New Yor for the “Gathering” to fight for the mysterious “Prize.” It’s up to MacLeod to make sure that the Prize does not fall into the hands of his enemy, Kurgan.
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*Availability in US Director Russell Mulcahy Release Date March 7, 1986 Writers Gregory Widen , Peter Bellwood , Larry Ferguson Cast Christopher Lambert , Roxanne Hart , Clancy Brown , Sean Connery , Beatie Edney , Alan North Runtime 116 minutes
Highlander is notorious as a franchise with its retcons and generally ridiculous premise, and casting James Bond made it even more ludicrous. Connery gives a goofy performance, but it is terrible when he claims to be Egyptian. The Highlander reboot has cast Henry Cavill but hasn’t confirmed any other characters or cast members. However, if they include Ramírez again, an Egyptian actor should be cast to play him.
2 Keanu Reeves As Jonathan Harker
Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992)
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Keanu Reeves landed a role in Francis Ford Coppola’s star-studded take on Dracula, raising some eyebrows. The legendary director perhaps thought the unconventional casting choice could work and would complete the cast with a suitably famous name as the young, kindly love interest. However, this role is decidedly not Reeves’ strength and his awkward portrayal of the shy and unsure Jonathan Harker is constantly made fun of.
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Bram Stoker’s Dracula RRomanceHorror
Bram Stoker’s Dracula is a horror drama film that retells the classic tale of the iconic vampire Count Dracula. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, the film stars Gary Oldman as the titular character, alongside Winona Ryder, Keanu Reeves, and Anthony Hopkins. The story follows the centuries-old vampire as he moves from Transylvania to England, preying on humans and spreading terror.
Director Francis Ford Coppola Release Date November 13, 1992 Writers James V. Hart Cast Gary Oldman , Winona Ryder , Keanu Reeves , Anthony Hopkins , Sadie Frost Runtime 127 Minutes
Bram Stoker’s Dracula predates both The Matrix and John Wick; Reeves’ later intense, thrilling performances as these action heroes underscore that he wasn’t meant to play someone as romantically clueless as Jonathan. Coppola at least found good actors in Winona Ryder and Gary Oldman to play Mina and Dracula, respectively. Following Point Break, Reeves’ fans were disappointed, while his stepping back into his typical role with Speed a couple of years later was a welcome return.
1 Emma Stone As Captain Allison Ng
Aloha (2015)
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Aloha is also simply a flawed movie, surrounded by controversy at the time of its release due to Emma Stone being cast in the lead role, a woman who is part Hawaiian and part Chinese. Despite the makeup of Hawaii’s population, the movie is filled up with too many hugely famous, white actors. According to director Cameron Crowe, Allison Ng was based on a real local who was a quarter Chinese and a quarter Hawaiian, yet passed for white, yet the controversial Emma Stone movie didn’t handle this with any clarity or thoughtfulness.
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10/10 Aloha PG-13ComedyAdventureDocumentaryRomance
Military contractor Brian Gilcrest (Cooper) returns to Hawaii, the site of one of his finest career triumphs, to oversee the launch of a weapons satellite. While there, he attempts to reconnect with his long lost love (McAdams), and unsuspectingly falls for the Air Force watchdog (Stone) assigned to look over him.
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*Availability in US Director Cameron Crowe Release Date May 29, 2015 Writers Cameron Crowe Cast Bill Murray , Danny McBride , Alec Baldwin , Emma Stone , John Krasinski , Bradley Cooper , Rachel McAdams Runtime 105minutes
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Aloha‘s apparent recent surge in popularity also draws attention back to the casting choice, which is still seen as insensitive today. This movie came out the same year as The Danish Girl, and some of the actors, like Redmayne, might say that they regret it now. Several similar movies demonstrate instances where a casting choice seemed okay or even brilliant at the time when they never should have chosen that actor.
Source: TIME, Entertainment Weekly, Paste, Bustle, IndieWire, Wall Street Journal