10 Actors Who Quit Movies Because Of Other Actors
Terrence Howard wasn't happy that his co-star took a chunk of his salary.
Movies sure are a complicated old business. Getting hundreds of cast and crew members together to shoot a film requires a headache-inducing level of co-ordination across disciplines, such that the mere act of getting a movie in the can can feel like a damn miracle.
It's also little surprise that creative types can butt heads, failing to see eye-to-eye on the basics of a project, enough that one might ultimately decide to take leave of the assignment entirely.
An actor quitting a movie because they can't get along with their co-star is just one possibility, though: perhaps an actor signed onto a role specifically to work with a certain actor who eventually decided to depart.
Maybe they bailed because a rising star took away a sizeable chunk of their pay packet, or in rare instances, a personal issue with another actor unrelated to the production might've caused them to make an exit.
There are of course two sides to every story, but beyond assigning blame or painting anyone as a hero or a villain, these actors all quit movies because of the actions of another performer...
10. Julia Roberts Quit Because She Couldn't Convince Daniel Day-Lewis To Co-Star - Shakespeare In Love
In the case of Julia Roberts, she didn't quit a movie because of a problematic actor she refused to work with, but actually quite the opposite.
Best Picture-winning dramedy Shakespeare in Love was in development for years before finally getting made. It very nearly started shooting in the early '90s, with Julia Roberts set to play the part of Viola de Lesseps, later played by Gwyneth Paltrow to Oscar-winning success.
However, Roberts' contract gave her control over the casting of her co-stars, and insisted that the still-uncast part of William Shakespeare be offered to Daniel Day-Lewis, believing him the only actor capable of playing the Bard.
But the famously selective Day-Lewis ended up turning the part down, and even though Roberts allegedly flew to the UK to try and convince him personally, he opted to star in In the Name of the Father instead, for which he received a Best Actor Oscar nomination.
As a result of this, Roberts dropped out of the film a mere six weeks before shooting was set to begin, with sets and costumes already being created.
Universal ended up putting the project on ice, and director Edward Zwick failed to successfully shop it to other studios until the late '90s when Miramax finally took a punt on it.