10 Best Actor Replacements In Movies

7. Donald Pleasence - You Only Live Twice

Ed Harris Truman Show
MGM/UA

You Only Live Twice was the James Bond film which finally bestowed a proper, fleshed-out part to villain Ernst Stavro Blofeld, with Czech actor Jan Werich originally cast in the role.

Once Werich made it to set to begin shooting, however, producer Albert R. Broccoli and director Lewis Gilbert both felt that they'd made a mistake, even comparing his look to Father Christmas.

Broccoli and Gilbert nevertheless pressed ahead, hoping that their instincts were wrong, but after a few days of shooting agreed that Werich just wasn't menacing enough to play the supervillain. And so, the great Donald Pleasence was hurriedly drafted in to replace him, reshooting Werich's scenes - save for a few shots of him stroking Blofeld's pet cat - and completing the rest of the role.

Pleasence brought with him many ideas for the character, including Blofeld's now-iconic scarred eye, and though many actors have portrayed the villain over the last 50+ years, Pleasence's rendition remains the easy consensus favourite among fans.

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Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.