20 Things You Didn't Know About 2021's Oscar Nominees

Difficult though it might seem to imagine anyone but Carey Mulligan in Promising Young Woman's lead role of Cassandra "Cassie" Thomas, the part was actually originally intended for another actress entirely.

Margot Robbie serves as a producer on the film after acquiring the script from writer-director Emerald Fennell through her production company LuckyChap Entertainment, and once upon a time had considered playing Cassie herself, before deciding Mulligan was a better fit. Robbie said:

"This was a hard one to step aside for...But I felt like I would perhaps be the kind of Cassie people might expect, you know? And I feel like someone like Carey - we just haven't seen her do this. She brings gravitas to it."

Though there's little doubt Robbie would've killed the part, Mulligan definitely brings a different and more unexpected energy to it, so it's hard to argue with the ultimate decision.