20 Actors Who Had To Fight Famous Friends For The Same Role

There's no biz like showbiz, even when it puts you up against a friend.

Hollywood is a fierce business that can put you up against anybody — even your friends.

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There are only so many roles out there and countless actors vying for them. Once in a while, that means friends will find themselves up against one another for a role. Here are times it's happened to some pretty famous faces.

1. Jennifer Lawrence and Emma Stone both wanted to play Olive in Easy A.

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In a November 2017 event featuring both actors, Lawrence admitted to having wanted to play Olive in Easy A. "I auditioned for Easy A. I wanted it so bad," she shared, per Entertainment Tonight. "Well, guess what? You didn't get it. You didn't get it because you suck!" Stone joked.

2. Taraji P. Henson could have handled being Olivia Pope in Scandal.

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Taraji P. Henson admitted to auditioning for the role that ultimately went to friend Kerry Washington. "When I went in to read for Shonda Rhimes, in my mind I was like, 'This is Kerry Washington. Why am I even in here? '... It was hers," she told Power 105.1's Angie Martinez. "It was her job, and she's great in it."  

3. ...so did Gabrielle Union.

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Gabrielle Union was also auditioning for the role of Olivia Pope. In the end, it was her and Washington. "I said to myself, 'Oh my God, these roles are out there,'" Union shared of the experience. "It showed me that you don't have to settle. Luckily, the success of her and the show bred more work. Just from the audition process, I knew that I couldn't go backward."

4. John Krasinski and Chris Evans were both up for Captain America.

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Chris Evans may seem like the obvious choice for Captain America, but his buddy John Krasinski was also up to play Steve Rogers. "I just saw Chris a couple of weeks ago and we were still laughing about it," Krasinski said. "I said, 'I love that you retired in my role.'"

5. Selma Blair could have been Joey Potter on Dawson's Creek.

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Blair has been open about badly wanting the role of Joey Potter, but not feeling too bad when it went to Katie Holmes. Another friend of Selma's, Sarah Michelle Gellar, also auditioned for the role.

6. Selma and Sarah Michelle also faced off for the role of Buffy on Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

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The two '90s big-screen babes also competed for small-screen success Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

7. Either Leonardo DiCaprio or Matthew McConaughey could have starred in Titanic.

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The two actors have crossed paths many times over the years, with McConaughey beating DiCaprio in the 2014 Oscar race for Best Actor. Leo has gotten a role that Matthew wanted, though...in Titanic. Kate Winslet shared in a 2017 interview that she did a screen test with Matthew for the role.

8. DiCaprio also was offered the role of Dirk Diggler in Boogie Nights.

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DiCaprio initially hadn't hit it off with The Basketball Diaries co-star Mark Wahlberg. They worked out their differences, however, and when DiCaprio turned down the role of Dirk, he recommended Wahlberg for it.

9. Jon Hamm almost played Nick Dunn in Gone Girl.

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Jon Hamm originally had the role in the bag, but his Mad Men contract allegedly barred him from doing the film, according to Page Six. The role was taken by his The Town co-star and buddy Ben Affleck.

10. Tiffani Thiesen and Jenny Garth were friends when they both auditioned for the role of Kelly Kapowski in Saved by the Bell.

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It would, of course, all work out for the best. Garth was iconic as another Kelly, Kelly Taylor in Beverly Hills, 90210. When Thiesen was through playing Kapowski, she joined the 90210 cast as Valerie Malone and carved out her own place in the show's history. Sadly, the actors have since had a falling out.

11. Mel Gibson could have been Marvel's Odin instead of Anthony Hopkins.

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Gibson and Hopkins worked together on 1984's The Bounty and remained friends. They found themselves up against each other for the role of Norse god Odin in the MCU.

12. Reese Witherspoon could have been Peggy Dodd in the 2012 film The Master.

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Director Paul Thomas Anderson revealed on the podcast WTF With Mark Maron that they'd considered Reese Witherspoon to play Peggy Dodd. Witherspoon was nothing but supportive as Amy Adams eventually found herself in the role, which scored her Golden Globe and Oscar nominations.

13. Charlie Cox and Tom Hiddleston became friends because of how they'd frequently compete for roles.

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"We kept seeing each other at the same auditions and we became really good friends as a result," Hiddleston said of Cox. "So we’d walk out of the auditions and say, ‘Do you want to go have some lunch? Let’s go have a burger.’” Cox was considered for the MCU's Loki, but would later join as Matt Murdock in Daredevil. 

14. Anne Hathaway was originally slated to play Tiffany Maxwell in Silver Linings Playbook.

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Jennifer Lawrence so rocked this role that it may surprise you to learn it initially belonged to Anne Hathaway. Hathaway dropped out of the project due to "creative differences" with director David O. Russell.

15. Lucas Hedges frequently found himself up against Timothée Chalamet, like for the role of Tom in Interstellar.

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Lucas Hedges says he and Timothée Chalamet found themselves out for a number of the same roles and became friendly in the process. They eventually worked together in Lady Bird.

16. Gwyneth Paltrow also auditioned for the role of Dr. Ellie Sattler in Jurassic Park.

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The two ladies, plus Helen Hunt, all auditioned for the role that ended up being Dern's. "I'm a lucky girl," she said of the experience.

17. James Garner and Paul Newman competed to play the older Noah in The Notebook.

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The two actors are lifelong friends who worked together here and there for decades. Entertainment Tonight also reports that George Clooney was considered for a young Noah before Ryan Gosling got the part.

18. Liam Neeson was originally considered for the role of President Abraham Lincoln in Lincoln that Daniel Day-Lewis won the Oscar for.

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Though it's known that Daniel Day-Lewis was long pursued for the role, during a period where he wasn't attached to the project, his friend Liam Neeson was considered. Ultimately when it came time for a reading, Neeson didn't have the heart to get started on the project, just around two months after the death of his wife, Natasha Richardson. He's praised Day-Lewis's acting in the Oscar-winner.

19. Gwen Stefani is friends with Angelina Jolie and even was up against her for the role in Mr. & Mrs. Smith.

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"It was between me and Angelina Jolie," she admitted in a Vogue interview. "And I'm like, 'Oh, great. I got a shot here.'"

20. Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig were both up to play 007.

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Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig were both considered for the role of James Bond once Pierce Brosnan decided he was finished with his era. Jackman, however, was tied up as Wolverine in X-Men, leaving the role to Craig. Jackman would still consider taking over the role, he told the Hollywood Reporter.

Do you think any of these movies went with the wrong pick? Sound off in the comments!

21. Don’t miss Sam Claflin in the new rom-com Book of Love from BuzzFeed Studios, coming to Amazon Prime Video February 4 and Sky Cinema February 12.

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