Are There Truly Roles that You Can’t Recast?

[Deck Rickard]

I was having this debate in my head earlier (oh the rabbit holes you can find yourself going down due to quarantine boredom) about whether there are certain roles that can never be recast. For the most part, I feel like the majority of characters out there, no matter how iconic, are not exclusive to one actor.

People thought that no one could ever play the Joker after Heath Ledger. But after one huge misstep (Leto) we got Phoenix’s transformative, Oscar-winning performance. There were some people who said that no one but Mel Gibson could ever play Mad Max. And while there are some fans that still say that, Fury Road is a film beloved by fans and critics alike. And even if you liked Mel better than Hardy, I don’t think Fury Road would be considered the classic that it is if Hardy was bad in the role.

Yet maybe there are exceptions. There are a few characters that people don’t seem willing to entertain the idea of a recast. Curiously, a few of them happened to be played by Harrison Ford. While there are some people (myself included) who enjoyed Solo, the film underperformed enough and had enough production troubles that it (at least partially) caused Disney to completely change up its Star Wars plans for the foreseeable future. And why did people dislike it? Probably a number of reasons but I think a big part of the problem was that they didn’t like the recast. And then there is Indiana Jones - a role so associated with Ford that the mere mention of a recast is often met with scorn. And even Spielberg himself thinks it’s so out of the question that he’d rather have Ford whip-swinging through tombs in his 80s than hire a younger actor.

Even Ford’s take on Jack Ryan might be too iconic to overcome. They first tried recasting with Ben Affleck (strike one) and then Chris Pine (strike two) before giving the character a rest on the silver screen and moved him to Amazon. John Krasinski is okay in the role and the show seems to be doing well but I have my doubts about whether his take on the character would have been successful in a movie.

Ford is clearly a tough act to follow, at least when it comes to these characters. What do you think? Are these roles recastable (I know that’s not a real word, but go with me here)? What are some other performances that might be too iconic to recast?

 

[Detective Conan]

It will be very hard for me to see someone else other than RDJ play Tony Stark.

 

[Wheels]

I was one of the people who grumbled about Solo even being greenlit, but I ended up liking it. Still, I was proven right that the masses wouldn't accept a new actor playing Han.

I would think you should be able to recast any role in theory but there's no telling if the audience will accept the idea . We can make a guess but we don't know.

 

[Enriquespy]

For me:

The man with no name. (Blondie). Also, Tuco and Angel Eyes.
Dirty Harry too.
Norman Bates. The one remake was of no help.
Indiana Jones. Personally.

 

[Iceman]

I'm always open to this. Not to say that it will be straightforward but it is always at least possible to give me great future interpretations of roles that were already perfectly cast first time around.

 

[Fincher]

If nothing else, they could wait a hundred years and recast Indiana Jones, and most of us who care right now won't be around to complain.

I don't know for sure which characters fans simply won't accept, but speaking for myself, Indiana Jones is the only one where I'm that firmly attached to a specific actor (although I'm potentially open to young Indy within the same continuity).

That said, there are some properties where I wouldn't be too enthusiastic about the idea of a reboot because my enjoyment was tied up in the execution (likely including the actor) more than the premise, so it's hard to sell me on a new version. There's some characters where I'm just particular in general, and most actors would seem lacking. And when you're recasting within the same continuity, that creates pressure to stay true to who came before. It's one thing if I didn't like the previous actor at all, but I didn't care for Don Cheadle as a replacement for Terrence Howard, and I didn't care for Maggie Gyllenhaal as a replacement for Katie Holmes, so someone who really stood out isn't going to be easy to follow. Solo I accepted fine because it was Han when he was younger and I was happy enough with the actor, but recasting Han during or after the original trilogy would be very hard.

 

[Drizzle]

Only three come to mind right now:


- Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones (adult)
- Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark
- Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow

Yet maybe there are exceptions. There are a few characters that people don’t seem willing to entertain the idea of a recast. Curiously, a few of them happened to be played by Harrison Ford. While there are some people (myself included) who enjoyed Solo, the film underperformed enough and had enough production troubles that it (at least partially) caused Disney to completely change up its Star Wars plans for the foreseeable future. And why did people dislike it? Probably a number of reasons but I think a big part of the problem was that they didn’t like the recast. And then there is Indiana Jones - a role so associated with Ford that the mere mention of a recast is often met with scorn. And even Spielberg himself thinks it’s so out of the question that he’d rather have Ford whip-swinging through tombs in his 80s than hire a younger actor.

I don't see Alden Ehrenreich as Han Solo as a full on recasting since he played a younger iteration of the character, not unlike River Phoenix playing Young Indy in Last Crusade but a much bigger scale. It would have been a lot more intrusive if it had been another actor playing OT-era Han Solo. Younger versions seem to be fair game for the most part. After all, Donald Glover as Lando seemed to go over well (IMO he was the best part of Solo).

 

[Sawyer]

I say if the character existed long before the actor’s portrayal, they’re still in play. I never thought there would never be another Joker after Heath. And I know there will be another Tony Stark, another Wolverine. It’ll just take time.

 

[Kahran Ramsus]

The man with no name. (Blondie).

I kind of view Charles Bronson in Once Upon a Time in the West as essentially being the same character.

 

[Shinobi Shaw]

There’s only one man that can play Forrest Gump, IMO.

 

[Eddie Dean]

I kind of view Charles Bronson in Once Upon a Time in the West as essentially being the same character.

Man with No Name was recast in millions of spaghetti westerns. Some where even good!

 

[Doctor Jones]

Indiana Jones
Jack Sparrow
John McClane

These actors all pretty much created the character in imbuing themselves into it making it taking a life of it's own, creating a different character altogether original. Just think if Tom Selleck got cast as Indy, or Hugh Jackman was cast as Sparrow, or Sinatra came back as a sequel to The Detective.

I guarantee it would not have been the same. As they would be totally different characters.

 

[Wheels]

The Tony Stark thing always makes me laugh. The way superhero movies in particular work is you recast one day. You don't stop making these films because an actor leaves.

 

[Sawyer]

I think the nature of the MCU has people thinking that, because the universe Downey’s Tony belonged to is still going, then the character is simply done.

 

[Eddie Dean]

If they reboot the whole thing I can see a new Tony, but not till then. And not when they can use magic and alternate universes / timeline to bring back Downey if the films start losing money.

 

[Wheels]

I think the nature of the MCU has people thinking that, because the universe Downey’s Tony belonged to is still going, then the character is simply done.

Right now yeah. The MCU characters will get rebooted though.

 

[Sawyer]

Right now yeah. The MCU characters will get rebooted though.

I imagine something like The Multiverse of Madness will play a big part in paving the way for that eventuality.

 

[Deck Rickard]

Indiana Jones
Jack Sparrow
John McClane

These actors all pretty much created the character in imbuing themselves into it making it taking a life of it's own, creating a different character altogether original. Just think if Tom Selleck got cast as Indy, or Hugh Jackman was cast as Sparrow, or Sinatra came back as a sequel to The Detective.

I guarantee it would not have been the same. As they would be totally different characters.

These are really good points; all three of those actors incorporated some of their movie persona into those roles so has another actor been cast in those parts, it would have felt very different.

Also, the discussion about the MCU is interesting since we’re all assuming that most of those actors wouldn’t be replaced unless the universe is rebooted. But we’ve already had some recasting within this universe (Hulk, Rhodey) and it’s worked out alright. Granted, RDJ would be a tough act to follow (I would also argue that Evans and Hemsworth would be tough to replace) but if there is one studio that could pull it off, it would be Marvel.

 

[Sawyer]

These are really good points; all three of those actors incorporated some of their movie persona into those roles so has another actor been cast in those parts, it would have felt very different.

Also, the discussion about the MCU is interesting since we’re all assuming that most of those actors wouldn’t be replaced unless the universe is rebooted. But we’ve already had some recasting within this universe (Hulk, Rhodey) and it’s worked out alright. Granted, RDJ would be a tough act to follow (I would also argue that Evans and Hemsworth would be tough to replace) but if there is one studio that could pull it off, it would be Marvel.

True, but we’re talking about guys who were in one movie apiece (and one of them was just a supporting role) vs. someone who was never less than co-lead across nine films (plus a cameo) for over a decade.

 

[Wheels]

I do think Selleck fits as Indy though. I've always been able to see that. The other choices for Han are bizarre though.

 

[Sawyer]

Al Pacino’s Han Solo would’ve been quite something.

 

[Wheels]

It's Walken that gets me the most. He's great and all but I'm happy to be in the Ford timeline.

 

[Deck Rickard]

Speaking of movies that could have been drastically different, I just read that George Lucas was John Milius’s original choice to direct Apocalypse Now. That tops every alternate universe movie scenario I’ve ever heard of. I can’t believe I never heard this before. I mean, can you imagine?

“I don’t like the jungle. It’s wet and humid and sticky and bugs get everywhere.”

 

[Schlosser85]

IMO there’s too much Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones to recast. They’re just inextricably linked.

 

[AverageMan]

I don't think any other shark than Bruce could play the shark in Jaws.

Seriously, I can't think of many outside of those already mentioned - maybe Brando in the Godfather?