4. Robert Downey, Jr. Was Originally Attached To The Lead Role In Inherent Vice
It's not uncommon for a director to pick a star then work with him for a string of consecutive movies. Martin Scorsese famously collaborated with Robert De Niro on a number of classic movies before proverbially trading him in for a younger model, more recently working with Leonardo DiCaprio. DiCaprio might well have turned out to be Paul Thomas Anderson's regular leading man had he not opted out of Boogie Nights in favour of starring in Titanic - instead, it seems as if Anderson's muse of sorts could be Joaquin Phoenix. Phoenix's performances in both The Master and Inherent Vice have been yet another reminder of his real talent, but the latter movie might have been considerably different had the original choice, Robert Downey, Jr., taken on the part. Downey, Jr. would have been an altogether different Doc Sportello and it would have been great to see him acting in something more beyond the mainstream.