10 More Actors Who SAVED Their Careers By Turning Down Movie Roles
8. Zendaya Turned Down Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B
2014's Lifetime biography of late R&B music star Aaliyah was originally set to star Zendaya in the lead role, and marked a point at which a then-17-year-old Zendaya was beginning to transition from Disney child star into serious dramatic actress.
However, she eventually dropped out of the role, citing a multitude of reasons - the film's low production values, the lack of approval from Aaliyah's family, and resulting issues with using her music, requiring cover versions to be recorded.
Zendaya was later replaced by Alexandra Shipp, and given that Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B went on to be panned by both critics and Aaliyah's fans, it was most certainly a bullet dodged on Zendaya's part.
More to the point, given that the film was released barely a year before Zendaya was cast as MJ in Spider-Man: Homecoming, if she'd taken the biopic role it's entirely possible Disney wouldn't have considered her for MJ at all, especially accepting their general aversion to controversy.
Instead, the Spider-Man part massively raised Zendaya's profile with the mainstream, paving the way for her to become a genuine movie star in the years that followed.