A good ol' fashioned miscasting usually goes down one of two ways: either an actor is genuinely miscast in a role and the entire movie crumbles under the weight of their performance, or an actor is miscast and somehow manages to transcend the role entirely and nobody gives a crap, 'cause man weren't they awesome? But there is a third option - one which occurs far less frequently: that of the bonafide, clear as day miscasting that ends up getting mostly praised anyway. How does that differ from option two, you ask? Well, in option two, an actor who originally appears to be miscast on the surface reveals themselves to be perfect for the part (Tom Cruise in Interview with the Vampire springs to mind). But with this third option, an actor who is so clearly wrong for the part ends up getting praised or lavished with awards, despite the fact that - even after the picture is over - you can't escape the lingering feeling that they were miscast. Here we take a look at some movie miscastings that were - rather surprisingly - lavished with respect and praise. Once again, we'll reiterate that these performances weren't necessarily terrible, but remain notably ill-conceived. Is it merely a case of jumping on the bandwagon?
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
