# Name the most horribly mis-cast actors(or actresses) here! **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 4, 2001, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530 "2001-06-04T15:47:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bernse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@bernse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bernse)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/1 "2001-06-04T15:47:30Z")
I don’t recall this thread being done before, so here goes. Name the people who you think had no business playing the roll they did in a movie. You get extra points if you can name the person that in your opinion _would_ have been the best choice for the roll. My first vote goes for Denise Richards as \ Dr. Christmas Jones in **The World Is Not Enough**. I mean do you really think that they expected us to believe that Denise Richards would be believable as some nuclear scientist? Some to replace her? Well, they would have to be beautiful (Bond Girl) but can at least _look_ damn intelligent. Maybe Vanessa Williams? She looked pretty good as a scientist in Eraser. Maybe Natasha Hendsrisdge? (sp) Anyone else? ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/2 "2001-06-04T15:54:39Z")
Well, there’s the classic, John Wayne as Genghis Khan. I haven’t seen it, but wow. That’s what name recognition will do for ya in the movies, I guess. As for who’d be better? How about, any asian actor, ever? Even some asian actresses? I think not having James Earl Jones play Darth Vader was a huge mistake. I mean, can you imagine the look on Luke’s face when he takes the helmet off and Darth’s black? He’d be thinking, “hmmm… maybe he isn’t my father, after all…” ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/3 "2001-06-04T15:57:29Z")
OK, this should be controversial. I like Audrey Hepburn, but I think she was totally wrong for Holly Golightly in “B’fast at Tiffany’s.” She was too smart and sweet and good-girly, and was not believeable in the role. Truman Capote wanted Marilyn Monroe for the part, and I think she would have been much better. And Bette Midler as Jacqueline Susann? Well, THAT movie died the death it deserved. Debi Mazar would have been good, but she’s not a big enough name . . . ---
**Author:** ![Fiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e274bd/32.png) [@Fiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiver)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/4 "2001-06-04T16:09:44Z")
I thought Mary Astor was terrible in **The Maltese Falcon**. Maybe that’s less an example of miscasting than of simply casting a poor actress for the type required. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/5 "2001-06-04T16:09:45Z")
Melanie Griffith in “Working Girl.” It was impossible to believe she was intelligent enough to do what she did. Jason Robards in “Isadora.” He played a European nobleman and was just too American for the role to be believeable. Barbra Streisand in “All Night Long.” Though she deserves credit for playing against type, had just too much brassiness for to play a mousy character. Walter Pigeon in “Forbidden Planet.” He hated the role and deliberately phoned in his performance, marring an otherwise fine film. John Denver in “Oh, God.” Too bland and middle America for a character that was Jewish in the book. Richard Benjamin should have been the choice here. Dabney Coleman in “On Golden Pond.” Hard to see him as a good guy. ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/6 "2001-06-04T17:49:44Z")
Nicolas Cage as Captain Corelli. ---
**Author:** ![xizor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xizor/32/102_2.png) [@xizor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xizor)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/7 "2001-06-04T18:02:59Z")
Edward G. Robinson in the 10 Commandments (“Hmmwaa, where’s your god now, Moses?”) ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/8 "2001-06-04T18:06:59Z")
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – just about everyone in **Man of la Mancha**. What were they thinking?! Peter O’Toole as Cervantes/Alonso Quijana/ Don Quixote? The man can’t sing!! Howard Kiel wasn’t available? The man _originated_ the role. Who cares if his name isn’t as familiar as O’Toole’s? Sophia Loren as Aldonza/Dulcinea? She’s gorgeous and sexy (still!), but she can’t sing, either. Should’ve gotten Joan Diener. James Coco as servant/Sancho Panza? He sings _too_ well! And while we’re at it, **The Wiz** was hopelessly miscast. Again, what was wrong with the original stars? Brian Donleavy in the first two Professor Quatermass movies (\*\* The Quatermass Xperiment/The Creeping Unknown\*\* and **Quatermass 2/Enemy from Space** ) Fine, well-written British SF shouldn’t have someone who sounds like an American gangster playing the part of a British professor. BTW, I _liked_ Pidgeon as Dr. Morbius. I never heard that he disliked the role, or felt it was “phoned in”. Whence this intelligence? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/9 "2001-06-04T19:43:19Z")
> [@](#): > > Howard Kiel wasn’t available? The man originated the role Richard Kiley did. As far as Pigeon is concerned, I’ll have to check where I saw that. I do find his performance very flat in any case. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/10 "2001-06-04T20:13:17Z")
> [@](#): > > ## quote: > > ## Howard Kiel wasn’t available? The man originated the role > > Richard Kiley did. My apologies. I still liked Morbius. At the very least, it’s nowhere hear as bad ad Harrison Ford’s voice-over for **Bladerunner** (which, I’m told \*was \* done under protest.0 ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Spaulding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b5a626/32.png) [@Capt.Spaulding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Spaulding)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/11 "2001-06-04T20:14:14Z")
Keanu Reeves as Jonathan Harker in “Bram Stoker’s Dracula”. For that matter, Keanu Reeves as anybody with an IQ higher than a turnip. ---
**Author:** ![Protesilaus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Protesilaus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Protesilaus)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/12 "2001-06-04T20:31:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by bernse \* > \*\*My first vote goes for Denise Richards as \ Dr. Christmas Jones in **The World Is Not Enough**. I mean do you really think that they expected us to believe that Denise Richards would be believable as some nuclear scientist? > > Some to replace her? Well, they would have to be beautiful (Bond Girl) but can at least _look_ damn intelligent. Maybe Vanessa Williams? She looked pretty good as a scientist in Eraser. Maybe Natasha Hendsrisdge? (sp) > \*\* I think that movie would have been better if Richards and Sophie Marceau had switched roles. I could definitely buy Denise as a spoiled heiress (not too different from her _Wild Things_ role, after all) and I think Sophie could pull off the nuclear scientist role. ---
**Author:** ![Vinnie\_Virginslayer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/53a042/32.png) [@Vinnie\_Virginslayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vinnie_Virginslayer)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/13 "2001-06-04T20:43:02Z")
JMO: Joaquin Phoenix as the priest in “Quills”. Too whiny. (he’s REALLY good in “The Yards” however.) Sophia Copola in “Godfather 3”. Nuff said. Bill Murray in “The Razor’s Edge” Bill Murray, serious actor. Decent effort, didn’t work. Matthew McConehey (spelling?) as the President’s Spiritual Advisor in “Contact”. Pretty boy Matthew as the President’s “spirtual advisor”. Yeah, right. Have another doober, Matt. Bill Pullman as the President in “Independence Day” The worlds most unexciting politician. Bruce Willis in “Breakfast of Champions”. Actually, this whole movie was miscast. It should have been cast . . into the ocean. Keanu Reeves in “Dangerous Liasions”. Can you say “How art thou, dude?” (I’m still trying to decide whether he was miscast as the bad guy in “The Gift”. I enjoyed him in it but I think it was the novelty of him playing a badass) By the way I disagree with John Denver in “Oh God”. I thought he brought a “gee whiz” eyes wide open character to the movie that worked real well, but again, JMO. ---
**Author:** ![Vinnie\_Virginslayer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/53a042/32.png) [@Vinnie\_Virginslayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vinnie_Virginslayer)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/14 "2001-06-04T20:47:44Z")
Oh . . how can we forget Geroge Lazenby as 007 in “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service”? ---
**Author:** ![monster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@monster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monster)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/15 "2001-06-04T21:05:44Z")
Corin Nemec as Harold Lauder in Stephen King’s “The Stand”. We are expected to believe that Nemec (AKA Corky), who was the coolest guy in the world on “Parker Lewis Can’t Lose” is Harold Lauder??? Harold is supposed to be a gross, yukky, unlikable person. I think Dan Schneider, who played Ricky in “Better Off Dead” would’ve been a much better choice. Not that he’s yukky or anything. I just think he’d play the part better. ---
**Author:** ![Rayne\_Man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df705f/32.png) [@Rayne\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rayne_Man)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/16 "2001-06-04T21:18:46Z")
Dick Van Dyke as a Cockney in Mary Poppins. What an accent!! ---
**Author:** ![Terminus\_Est](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terminus_est/32/3087_2.png) [@Terminus\_Est](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terminus_Est)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/17 "2001-06-04T21:19:30Z")
Kevin Costner in “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves” [sub]Cary Elwes, at least, had an English accent.[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Allworthy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7cd45c/32.png) [@Allworthy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Allworthy)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/18 "2001-06-04T21:38:02Z")
Rutger Hauer as the backwoods patriarch Reuben Bean in “The Beans of Egypt, Maine.” I kid not. ---
**Author:** ![Drastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Drastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drastic)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/19 "2001-06-04T22:01:10Z")
George C. Scott in “Firestarter”. I remember it mainly because it’s the first time I ever really noticed horrible miscasting in a film. The character in the book was some badass elite ultra-special forces killing machine–which description really did not sit well with a fellow who looked like he would have an asthmatic attack by standing up. Absolute agreement on Denise Richards playing anyone with even an ounce of brain cells. Just doesn’t work. I could accept her as a starship pilot in “Starship Troopers” only because of the tactics all the ships displayed–i.e., massing very tightly together to ease the task of shooting them all. That made it easy to suspend disbelief–any military organization with tactics like that, of course they’d slap Denise into a helmsman position. ---
**Author:** ![Winnowill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/4491bb/32.png) [@Winnowill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Winnowill)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2001, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530/20 "2001-06-04T22:13:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by monster \* > \*\*Corin Nemec as Harold Lauder in Stephen King’s “The Stand”. > > We are expected to believe that Nemec (AKA Corky), who was the coolest guy in the world on “Parker Lewis Can’t Lose” is Harold Lauder??? Harold is supposed to be a gross, yukky, unlikable person. I think Dan Schneider, who played Ricky in “Better Off Dead” would’ve been a much better choice. > Not that he’s yukky or anything. I just think he’d play the part better. \*\* Hmm. I actually had it in mind to mention Jamie Sheridan as Randall Flagg in the same miniseries. My brother and I were actually discussing this the other day - and I forget who it was we decided would be better. But I agree with you about Harold, at any rate. Also - Tom Cruise as Lestat. There are more - I’ve forgotten whom, though! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-the-most-horribly-mis-cast-actors-or-actresses-here/67530.md?page=2)