It’s been said that nothing lasts forever, and in the wide world of film, that’s especially true. More specifically, nothing stays the same forever, not even our favorite characters. Sometimes, movie characters undergo the worst recast imagainable.
Naturally, not all recastings are bad things. Sometimes, it’s unavoidable – particularly when an actor is forced to step away from a role for one reason or another. In many situations, it’s better to have a new version of the character than none at all. Some, but not all: some recastings are truly horrific.
Though the reasons behind them may vary, the following recastings all have one thing in common: they’re awful. From the horrendously misguided to the utterly baffling, here are the worst times movie characters were recast. Prepare to feel outraged all over again, and don’t say we didn’t warn you.
8. Mary Corleone – The Godfather Part III (1990)
Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather is considered one of the greatest movies ever made. Its sequel, The Godfather Part II, is considered one of the best movie sequels ever made, with many believing it overshadows its predecessor. The final film in the trilogy, The Godfather Part III, was considerably less well-liked. The reasons are many, but one of the most consistently cited is Sofia Coppola’s performance in the role of Mary Corleone.
Mary finds herself at the lower end of this list for one reason: it’s only a recasting by a technicality. The character only briefly appeared as in a non-speaking capacity in The Godfather Part II, then aged around four or five. Her role in the Corleone saga didn’t come about until the events of The Godfather Part III, where she was played by the woefully untalented (acting-wise, at least) Sofia Coppola.
To be fair, Sofia wasn’t ever supposed to be in the film. The part had originally been given to Winona Ryder, who even went as part as to fly to Rome for production. However, when Ryder dropped out last minute, director Francis Ford Coppola found himself without an actress to play the role. In one of the worst panic-castings of all time, he opted for nepotism, and The Godfather Part III epically failed to live up to expectations as a result.