10 Actors Who Were Too Scared To Accept Movie Roles

10. Emily Watson Was Scared About Doing A French Accent In Amélie

Iconic French rom-com Amélie was a breakout success for lead actress Audrey Tautou, but she came very close to not even landing the role in the first place.

That's because director Jean-Pierre Jeunet originally envisioned English actress Emily Watson as the star of the movie, even going so far as to write the script for her.

Obviously though, this plan didn't work out. When Watson was offered the chance to play the title character, she turned it down - partly due to scheduling conflicts, but also because she was concerned that she wouldn't be able to convincingly speak French.

She was scared about "falling flat" on her face, which, in turn, gave her a severe case of cold feet, prompting her to reject the part.

With Watson declining, Jeunet changed his script to better suit a French actress, and he cast Tautou after noticing her on a movie poster.