Here Are 13 Times Movie Franchise Characters Were Replaced, And I Want To Know If You Prefer The Original Actors Or Their Replacements

The third movie jumped ahead 13 years from the ending of The Mummy Returns. At the time, director Robert Cohen said that Rachel didn't come back because she didn't want to "play the mother of a 21-year-old."

However, the actor's reps said she didn't want to be away from her then-two-year-old son during the film's five-month shoot in China.

In 2005, she told Total Film, "The official reason I didn’t do Hannibal is I was doing another movie, Flora Plum [a long-cherished project that has yet to be shot]. So I get to say, in a nice, dignified way, that I wasn’t available when that movie was being shot. But Clarice meant so much to Jonathan [Demme, the original director] and I, she really did, and I know it sounds kind of strange to say but there was no way that either of us could really trample on her."

On Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, he said, "It turns out that the person I helped become Iron Man...took the money that was supposed to go to me and pushed me out. I called my friend — that I helped get the first job — and he didn't call me back for three months."

In a 2010 statement, Marvel said, "We have made the decision to not bring Ed Norton back to portray the title role of Bruce Banner in The Avengers. Our decision is definitely not one based on monetary factors, but instead rooted in the need for an actor who embodies the creativity and collaborative spirit of our other talented cast members."

Then, Norton's agent released a statement, which said, "This offensive statement from Kevin Feige at Marvel is a purposefully misleading, inappropriate attempt to paint our client in a negative light. Here are the facts: two months ago, Kevin called me and said he wanted Edward to reprise the role of Bruce Banner in The Avengers...This past Wednesday, after several weeks of civil, uncontentious discussions, but before we had come to terms on a deal, a representative from Marvel called to say they had decided to go in another direction with the part. Counter to what Kevin implies here, Edward was looking forward to the opportunity to work with Joss and the other actors in the Avengers cast, many of whom are personal friends of his. Feige's statement is unprofessional, disingenuous, and clearly defamatory. Mr. Norton's talent, tireless work ethic, and professional integrity deserve more respect, and so do Marvel's fans."

In 2019, Edward told the New York Times Magazine, "We had positive discussions about going on with the films, and we looked at the amount of time that would've taken, and I wasn't going to do that. I honestly would've wanted more money than they'd have wanted to pay me."

Michael told the Backstage podcast, "To me, I know the name of the movie is Batman, and it's hugely iconic and very cool and cultural iconic and because of Tim Burton, artistically iconic, I knew from the get-go it was Bruce Wayne. That was the secret. I never talked about it. [Everyone would say] 'Batman, Batman, Batman does this,' and I kept thinking to myself, 'Y'all are thinking wrong here.' [It's all about] Bruce Wayne. What kind of person does that?… Who becomes that? What kind of person [does that]?

...And then when the director who directed the third one [came in], I said, 'I just can't do it.' And one of the reasons I couldn't do it was — and you know, he's a nice enough man, he's passed away, so I wouldn't speak ill of him even if he were alive—he, at one point, after more than a couple of meetings where I kept trying to rationalize doing it and hopefully talking him into saying, 'I think we don't want to go in this direction, I think we should go in this direction.' And he wasn't going to budge.

But I remember one of the things that I walked away going, 'Oh boy, I can't do this.' He asked me, 'I don't understand why everything has to be so dark and everything so sad,' and I went, 'Wait a minute, do you know how this guy got to be Batman? Have you read… I mean, it's pretty simple.'"

In 2017, Joel told The Hollywood Reporter, "Batman Forever, when we were on the world tour, it just really went to his head. I’m not going to get into that. He wanted to do Island of Doctor Moreau because Marlon Brando was going to be in it. So he dropped us at the eleventh hour.”

In 2020, Val told the New York Times about a specific experience on set that made him feel replaceable. One day, after shooting ended, he kept the Batsuit on because Warren Buffet was bringing his grandchildren by. However, the kids were more interested in riding the Batmobile and trying on the mask than speaking to Batman, which made Val realize the hero was meant to be as anonymous as possible so other people could see themselves reflected in him. 

He said, "That’s why it’s so easy to have five or six Batmans. It’s not about Batman. There is no Batman."

In a statement to Entertainment Weekly, she said, "I was stunned by Summit's decision to recast the role of Victoria for Eclipse. I was fully committed to the Twilight saga and to the portrayal of Victoria. I turned down several other film opportunities and, in accordance with my contractual rights, accepted only roles that would involve very short shooting schedules. My commitment to Barney's Version is only ten days. Summit picked up my option for Eclipse. Although the production schedule for Eclipse is over three months long, Summit said they had a conflict during those ten days and would not accommodate me. Given the length of filming for Eclipse, never did I fathom I would lose the role over a 10 day overlap. I was happy with my contract with Summit and was fully prepared to continue to honor it. Summit chose simply to recast the part. 

I am greatly saddened that I will not get to complete my portrayal of Victoria for the Twilight audience. This is a story, a theatrical journey, and a character that I truly love and about which I am very passionate. I will be forever grateful to the fan support and loyalty I've received since being cast for this role, and I am hurt deeply by Summit's surprising decision to move on without me. I wish the cast and crew of Eclipse only the very best."

His costar Corbin Bernsen told Sports Illustrated, "A couple years after Major League, I saw Wesley. I said, 'Hey, man, they're gonna make Major League II!' And he was like, 'You're gonna do that?' And I thought, Wow, how quickly they forget. He'd become Wesley Snipes. That rubbed me the wrong way."

In 2022, he also told Entertainment Weekly, "I was approached. I can't remember what I was doing at the time, but I felt like I wanted to go do The Quiet American instead with Michael Caine and shoot the first Western film in Vietnam ever, directed by Phillip Noyce, to tell an infinitely American story.

I'm always making diverse choices, and hopefully, that keeps me and an audience interested. With a bit of distance, I think they've all cumulatively led up to the place I'm in now."

In a 2018 YouTube video, she said, "Some people said that heard that I was working on something, which was not the case at the time. I was available and ready to do it and had talked to them about possibly doing it. But Disney decided to go in a different direction and recast the role."

In 2020, he told Time Out, "I actually found negotiating with them through my agent impossible. And I didn't really wanna do it that much."