10 Actors Who Refused To Make Sacrifices For Roles
3. Sean Connery Didn't Want To Learn The Mythology - The Lord Of The Rings
In fairness to the cinematic force of nature that was the late Sir Sean Connery, nobody was really to know just how monumental an impact Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy would have on the landscape of moviemaking. But that still doesn't change the fact that the iconic 007 star missed out on lining up alongside a multitude of hobbits and elves, largely because he wasn't in the mood to really scratch the surface.
After being offered a whopping 15% of the global box office receipts for the series to star as Gandalf, according to CNN, not to mention $4 million in the bank guaranteed, Connery gave the project a hard no. His reasoning behind not being on board was mostly due to simply not understanding the tale of a Fellowship doing everything in their power to conquer evil in Middle-earth - despite reading the books. In short, Connery just wan't happy to invest the time needed to really embrace the world that J.R.R. Tolkien had crafted in his legendary novels.
It's a shame too, because if he had, he'd have come away with a staggering $400 million, based on the film's eventual earnings.