Actors Who Turned Down Famous Roles (One Missed a $250 Million Payday, & Multiple Oscar Winners Said 'No' to 'Brokeback Mountain')

Some of Hollywood’s most recognizable stars have turned down very iconic roles in acclaimed movies!

Stars have to make a tough choice every time they’re offered a role. They need to field a list of potential projects and decide which one seems the most promising. While juggling them around, they might end up missing out on a chance to star in a project that becomes a serious blockbuster.

We previously rounded up 12 actors who nearly passed on what would become their most iconic roles. However, there are even more actors who did say “no thanks” to appearing in solid-gold hits.

For instance, someone turned down a role and wound up losing a $250 million payday! A pop icon had some regrets about passing on a chance to play Catwoman. One actress was even offered a chance to play Neo, a male role, in The Matrix!

So many stars, including several Oscar winners, also turned down a chance to star in Brokeback Mountain, the iconic queer movie that was met with critical acclaim.

You’ll be surprised to see who was offered a chance to star in movies such as Legally Blonde and Forrest Gump and who passed on roles within the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Scroll through the slideshow to see which actors passed on major roles and why…