10 Actors Who Were REJECTED For Recent Movies (And Why)
9. Tomasz Kot - No Time To Die
The Role: The film's then-unnamed main villain, who went on to become Lyutsifer Safin, as played by Rami Malek.
Why He Was Rejected: Reports indicated that Polish actor Kot, who came to prominence for his performance in the Oscar-nominated film Cold War, was tipped to play No Time to Die's central antagonist back when Danny Boyle was attached to direct the project.
Boyle exited the production amid "creative differences," apparently pertaining to both the script and his desire to cast the lesser-known Kot in the villain role, who at the time was intended to be a Russian terrorist.
Boyle reportedly bristled with not only Bond producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli but also star Daniel Craig over this casting call, and when he wouldn't budge over this and other aspects of the story, he was given the boot, naturally along with Kot.
Considering Malek's villain is generally accepted to be the weakest element of No Time to Die, it's a shame we never got to see what Kot could bring to the table.