Angelina Jolie Turned Down A Role With Leonardo DiCaprio Because Of This Person
Like so many other women in Hollywood, Angelina made mention that the filmmaker would make attempts to force himself onto her.
Oh, what could have been. Leonardo DiCaprio and Angelina Jolie appearing in the same film had the potential to be something special.
It all worked out nonetheless, as Kate Beckinsale appeared in the said film instead, and she would take home a statue for her contributions in the film.
Turns out, Jolie had her motives for turning down the role, as she recently admitted publically. A certain someone was attached to the script and it drove Angelina away from it, she would follow this trend throughout her career and encouraged others to stay away from said person, including her former man, Brad Pitt.
We’ll identify who the person is, along with how the role could’ve affected Jolie’s career. In truth, it didn’t deter her one bit, as she worked a film the following year that made double the revenues at the box office.
She Could’ve Won An Academy Award For The Role
The role could’ve been one that changed Angelina Jolie’s career. In fact, that person that took on the role in the film walked away from it with some serious hardware, winning an Oscar for ‘Best Supporting Actress’. The honor went to none other than Kate Beckinsale in ‘The Aviator’.
Although she was intrigued by the script, the actress revealed that accepting the role had more to do with Leonardo DiCaprio and Martin Scorcese’s attachment to the project.
“I didn’t care about Ava Gardner without Marty and Leo already being attached to [the project], but she had a very unique spirit and I really found that appealing. There was a broad quality to her that I think today we tend to no longer have, because she was a very feisty, fiery, warm, physically feminine, tough person, from what I could gather. And those are all very interesting qualities in a woman.”
Beckinsale looked up to Leo since his early work in films like ‘What’s Eating Gilbert Grape’, “I remember going and seeing What’s Eating Gilbert Grape and coming out with my boyfriend at the time and saying ‘I hope that’s a real boy and not an actor, because if it’s an actor we’re all screwed. That really raises the bar for everybody in a really terrifying way.”
The allure of those attached to the project got Kate onboard, however, it was not enough to sway another individual.
Turning It Down Because Of Harvey
Despite the script and those attached, Jolie was unwilling to work the film because of Harvey Weinstein. Like so many other women in Hollywood, Angelina made mention that the filmmaker would make attempts to force himself onto her, “If you get yourself out of the room, you think he attempted but didn’t, right? The truth is that the attempt and the experience of the attempt is an assault,” she said.
This, in turn, would lead to Jolie avoiding any types of projects with Weinstein attached to them. “I was asked to do ‘The Aviator’, but I said no because he was involved. I never associated or worked with him again. It was hard for me when Brad did,” she said.
Brad was advised not to, though he would work the 2012 film, ‘Killing Them Softly’. Again, the script and director were the main selling point for Pitt and not Harvey’s involvement, especially given that Pitt had an encounter with Harvey back in the day when he dated Gwenyth Paltrow.
The actress praised Brad for his bravery, “We were at the opening of Hamlet on Broadway…and Harvey was there, and Brad Pitt, it was like the equivalent of throwing him against the wall, you know, energetically. He came back and told me exactly what he said [to Harvey]. He said, ‘If you ever make her feel uncomfortable again, I’ll kill you,’ or something like that.”
Jolie’s career didn’t suffer from it and in fact, 2004 was one of her busier years.
It Didn’t Slow Down Her Workload
In truth, missing out on the role didn’t hurt Jolie’s career all that much. Her 2004 was packed with roles, including ‘Taking Lives’, ‘Shark Tale’, ‘Alexander’, and two other roles.
The following year in 2005, she would break the bank at the box office, appearing in the film ‘Mr. & Mrs. Smith‘ alongside none other than Brad Pitt. The film was a smash hit, almost doubling ‘The Aviator‘ at the box office, bringing in a near $500 million, $487.3 million to be exact.
It all worked out for Angelina as she stuck to her principles. Though fans can’t help but wonder what the film could’ve looked like with Jolie alongside Leo.
No doubt, it would’ve brought the fans to the theaters.
