10 Rejected Movie Actors Who NAILED It Second Time Around
6. Sam Rockwell Isn't Quite The Tech Whiz Marvel Were Initially Looking For
From the very second Robert Downey Jr. strutted out onto the scene as the face behind the Iron Man for the first time on the big screen, it was evidently clear that the actor was simply born to play Tony Stark.
But it wasn't merely a case of flicking through Jon Favreau's phone book, giving RDJ a quick bell and quickly setting about bringing this first-ever MCU offering to life. A number of big-time stars were all approached over the prospect of stepping into Stark's shoes as Kevin Feige and the gang embarked on this eventually game-changing endeavour.
And of those many names who auditioned to play the tech-savvy, quick-witted hero was none other than Sam Rockwell. But RDJ simply proved too perfect a fit for the role and Rockwell would ultimately be told thanks but no thanks.
Fast forward a feature, though, and the Green Mile star was finally allowed to flex his weapons manufacturer muscles as Justin Hammer, Tony Stark's business rival of sorts, in Iron Man 2.
He may not have been up to the Tony task, but Marvel still clearly saw potential in the actor as a tech-obsessed presence in their burgeoning universe.