11. Meg Ryan - Vivian Ward (Pretty Woman)
Meg Ryan will forever be remembered as one half of the famous twosome between herself and Tom Hanks in You've Got Mail and Sleepless in Seattle. Whilst Hanks was able to progress on from the Rom-com arena and further his career, Ryan was not, and despite being a very capable actress, she's never quite made it in terms of critically acclaimed performances in major Oscar worthy films. Ryan was director Rik Marshall's first choice for the now acclaimed role of Vivian Ward in the film Pretty Woman. The film told the story of Vivian's failed career as a prostitute and how her life changed when she was hired by a wealthy businessman. However Ryan mistakenly declined this significant opportunity to break her Oscar nomination duck and instead, Julia Roberts landed the role. Incidentally, this role was the making of Roberts' Hollywood career, netting her an Oscar nomination in the process. Ryan has actually gone on to state that she now regrets turning down the chance to play Vivian Ward. If her portrayal was anything like Roberts', the role might have been the Oscar opening that Ryan needed to expand her career onwards from the reigns of RomComs. Al Pacino (him again!) also turned down the Richard Gere role, though it's hard to imagine the film working so well with him in it.