10 Actors Who Must Regret Turning Down Major Film Roles

5. John Travolta - Forrest Gump (Forrest Gump)

Like many iconic film characters who are played to perfection by the actor, it's now impossible to imagine anyone other than the brilliant Tom Hanks playing the dim but ultimately lovable Forrest Gump. His performance was majestic, full of humour and heart, and it deservedly earned him his second successive Oscar triumph- he won for Philadelphia in 1993. It was Travolta though, perhaps surprisingly in the eyes of many, who was Robert Zemeckis' first-choice for the role. By the time 1994 rolled around, Travolta's career was not in a particularly healthy place, and the former Grease star was starring in insipid hits like Look Who's Talking Too. He foolishly said no to the role though, and in addition to Hanks bringing home an Academy Award, the film also won Best Picture and Zemeckis picked up Best Director. Admittedly, Travolta did get to play the part of Vincent Vega in Pulp Fiction in that same year, which completely revitalised his career and earned him an Oscar nomination, but it's still impossible to deny that he made a mistake turning down the role of Gump.