Ben Stiller’s Biggest Missed Roles: Audition Regrets Revealed
Ben Stiller opens up about two major film roles he lost after freezing during auditions, reflecting on how these missed chances might have changed his path in the industry.
With the recent buzz around Severance, plenty of punters have started to see Ben Stiller as more than just a bloke who cracks jokes. After years of making audiences laugh, he’s now got folks thinking, too, especially with his work behind the camera. It’s easy to forget just how many memorable roles he’s played over the years. But just as easily, you can overlook the parts that slipped through his fingers.
Roles That Got Away
Back when Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy was first being put together, Stiller was in the running for Brian Fantana. Paul Rudd ended up nabbing the part, but Stiller still managed a cheeky cameo in the famous ‘News Fight’ scene. He nearly landed a couple more of Will Ferrell’s gigs – Blades of Glory and Megamind – and was even considered for Willy Wonka in Tim Burton’s take on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. That would’ve been a sight.
But in a chat with The Guardian, Stiller let slip two more films he could’ve been part of.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to have a successful career, and I have incredible family and people I love and friends,”
he said.
“All these wonderful things that help offset the pain of the failures. But what if I didn’t have that? What if I didn’t have something that could take my mind off the time I screwed up that audition for My Cousin Vinny back in 1993, or my fourth callback for White Palace with Susan Sarandon, where I just froze up?”
He paused, then added,
“I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned that to anyone.”
My Cousin Vinny: The One That Got Away
Of the two films, My Cousin Vinny is the one most locals would know. It’s a classic legal comedy with a bit of a dig at class divides, starring Joe Pesci as a city lawyer who finds himself in a small country town. Stiller was up for the role of one of the students Vinny defends, but the idea of casting a Jewish actor as someone being mistreated by a Southern court was seen as too risky at the time. Will Smith was also considered for the other student, but he was passed over for similar reasons.
White Palace: A Missed Opportunity
White Palace is a different kettle of fish. The film stars Susan Sarandon as a woman stuck in a dead-end job, who ends up in a relationship with James Spader’s character, a young bloke still reeling from his wife’s death. Stiller auditioned for Spader’s role, but nerves got the better of him. At that point, he hadn’t yet made his name as a comedy star, so landing the part could’ve changed everything. Instead, another member of the so-called ‘Frat Pack’ took the job.
Given how much Stiller’s achieved since, it’s hard to feel too sorry for him. Still, it’s a bit of fun to imagine how things might’ve turned out if he’d landed those roles.