10 HUGE Movie Roles Actors Were Too Scared To Take On

Via his production company Plan B (also responsible for 2019’s criminally underrated Vice), Brad Pitt undeniably did a lot to elevate the profile of 12 Years a Slave. The actor had a hand in funding Steve McQueen’s third feature, a lavish historical epic which was a far cry from the austere character studies of the British artist’s first pair of feature films.

However, when it came time to cast the film, Pitt chose against taking on the role of viciously cruel slave owner Epps. Central to the story, the merciless figure of Epps would have been a massive responsibility and the actor knew it was a superb part.

His involvement in the production proves Pitt knew, as difficult as the content was, that 12 Years a Slave was a story which needed to be told. However, he worried about his children seeing him play such an amoral monster, and as such the role was handed over to Michael Fassbender.

A former collaborator of the director’s, Fassbender turned in a performance of uncompromising brutality as Epps, one which would go on to net him an Oscar nod and increase his already impressive standing in Hollywood.