10 Strangest Reasons Actors Turned Down Famous Movie Roles
5. Steve McQueen Couldn't Cry On Cue - Close Encounters Of The Third Kind
The Role
Roy Neary, the protagonist of Steven Spielberg's iconic sci-fi drama, a blue-collar worker who becomes obsessed with UFOs after an encounter with one.
The role eventually went to Richard Dreyfuss who played it so brilliantly, but Spielberg considered numerous other actors before him, including Dustin Hoffman, Al Pacino, Gene Hackman, and Jack Nicholson.
In fact, Spielberg's first choice for the role was none other than Steve McQueen, who declined it.
Why He Turned It Down
McQueen told Spielberg that, though he enjoyed the script, he didn't feel he was a good fit for the part because he wasn't able to cry on cue, which would undermine the emotional undercurrent of both the character and film.
Spielberg allegedly wanted McQueen enough that he agreed to amend the self-penned script, but McQueen insisted that he keep it as it is, leading to Dreyfuss eventually winning out.
This was just one of several massively successful 1970s movies McQueen turned down in the midst of semi-retirement, including Dirty Harry, The French Connection, and Apocalypse Now.
McQueen would've definitely brought a different energy to the part, but it's still easy to picture him in the role of Neary, tears or not.