10 Recent Movie Truths We've Just Found Out

5. Rachel McAdams Turned Down Iron Man, Casino Royale, Mission: Impossible III & The Devil Wears Prada

True Detective Woody Harrelson Matthew McConaughey
Columbia Pictures

Major actors tend to be relatively shy about revealing the many roles they've turned down over their careers, because after all, somebody else eventually went on to play those parts, and they may not be aware they weren't the first choice.

All the same, Rachel McAdams spoke freely in a recent interview with Bustle, where she confirmed that she turned down roles in a staggering five major movies between 2006 and 2008 - roles which would've made her a ton of money and even set her up in some huge franchises.

The roles? Pepper Potts in Iron Man, Vesper Lynd in Casino Royale, Julia in Mission: Impossible III, Andy in The Devil Wears Prada, and Agent 99 in Get Smart.

The parts were ultimately played respectively by Gwyneth Paltrow, Eva Green, Michelle Monaghan, and Anne Hathaway (times two), but it's incredibly easy to see how McAdams would've fared well in any of these movies.

Save for Eva Green, who is just ridiculously iconic as Vesper, McAdams might've even been an upgrade in a few cases - especially with regard to Pepper Potts.

Though McAdams appreciates the fortunate spot she was in and the risk she took rejecting such lucrative parts, she ultimately feels that it was for the best:

"I felt guilty for not capitalising on the opportunity that I was being given, because I knew I was in such a lucky spot... But I also knew it wasn't quite jiving with my personality and what I needed to stay sane. There were definitely some anxious moments of wondering if I was just throwing it all away, and why was I doing that? It's taken years to understand what I intuitively was doing."

McAdams' career certainly hasn't suffered, though, starring in a slew of critically and commercially successful films since, and even receiving a Best Supporting Actress nomination for her role in Spotlight in 2016.

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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.