20 Wild Horror Movie Casting Choices We Almost Got

Interview with the Vampire's human lead, journalist Daniel Molloy, is of course played by Christian Slater, but Slater was an incredibly late addition to the cast and not who anyone expected to see on set playing Molloy even weeks before shooting started.

This is because the great River Phoenix was originally cast as Molloy, but the actor tragically died at just age 23 of a drug overdose in October 1993, a mere four weeks before Interview with the Vampire was due to roll cameras.

Slater was therefore an emergency replacement casting, and donated his entire salary to some of Phoenix's favourite charitable organisations, while Phoenix also received a dedication in the film's credits.

It takes very little thought to see Phoenix in this role, and so it's easy to see why Slater of all actors was drafted in as his replacement. It's simply wild that such a talented performer was taken from us so suddenly and so young.