12 Least Successful Recastings Of Iconic Film Characters

7. Johnny Depp/ Jude Law/ Colin Farrell - Tony

Film: The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009) Replacing: Heath Ledger It's one thing to replace an actor or actress because they demanded too much money or weren't co-operative behind the scenes; it's quite another to step into someone's shoes after said actor has died in the middle of filming. Most directors in these situations choose not to recast, with body doubles being employed to cover for Brandon Lee in The Crow and Oliver Reed in Gladiator. But Terry Gilliam neither had this option nor seemingly wanted to take it on The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. Gilliam was about a third of the way through filming in London when news broke of Heath Ledger's death in New York, aged just 28. Filming was halted as various options were discussed, such as using CGI to enable Ledger's character to alter his appearance, akin to Brad Pitt in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Eventually Gilliam brought in Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell to play altered versions of Tony in the different fantasy realms, while Zander Gladish doubled for Ledger in some of the wider shots to ease the audience into the change. Each of the three new actors donated their fees to Ledger's daughter Matilda, who had been left out of his most recent will. While you have to give props to Gilliam for the inventiveness of his solution, in hindsight the sensible option would have been to have shut down production. The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus is a complete mess, which squanders a potentially interesting story through a host of flat performances and unappealing characters. None of the three replacements for Ledger are convincing, with Depp phoning things in (nothing new there), Law playing completely to type, and Farrell looking genuinely confused as to what he is meant to be doing and why. Perhaps the film would have worked if merely one actor had been Ledger's replacement, but as things stand it only makes the film more aimless and meandering.