Arnold Schwarzenegger is one of the most decorated movie stars in Hollywood and has played some of the most iconic roles. The actor retained the Mr. Olympia title for six years and won the Mr. Universe title in 1967. But the Austrian Oak also wanted to be in the movies and he was finally cast as a lead cast in Conan the Barbarian, which became a success at the Box Office.
However, the actor is most famous for his role as the Terminator in the 1984 movie of the same name. He has been cast in some of the most popular movies such as Commando, Predator, The Expendables, and many more. But before Schwarzenegger made so many popular movies, he had to face rejection in the industry due to his Austrian accent.
Arnold Schwarzenegger was Rejected for the Role of Superman in the 1978 movie
The 1978 Superman movie was a hit at the Box Office. The film was directed by Richard Donner, and it featured Christopher Reeve in the role of Clark Kent/ Superman. Arnold Schwarzenegger also auditioned for the role of Superman in the movie and he made it through several cuts of the audition until Marlon Brando, who played the role of Jor-El, Superman’s Kryptonian Biological father, voted against the Predator actor.
In his contract for Superman: The Movie, Marlon Brando was given the right to determine which actors would play the leading roles, and he rejected Schwarzenegger stating the public would not be able to understand the Austrian action star.
Richard Donner was impressed by Christopher Reeve’s performance during his screen test in 1977, and the actor was dedicated to the role as he was obsessed to achieve the Superman figure. He went on an intensive workout routine and increased his weight from 188 to 212 pounds.
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Comments on His Accent
The Commando actor talked about his accent with The Daily Mail in 2015, where he mentioned his Austrian accent and acknowledged that the fans loved his accent in the films, and his catchphrases wouldn’t be the same without his accent.
“It’s now become such a big part of me, the accent, that people really enjoy it.”
However, he mentioned that he could speak unaccented English “if I need to.” But he said that in order to be a successful actor he had to work on his English.
“I needed to work on my acting and work on my English accent. I worked on my accent five hours a day, just like I worked on my body five hours a day.”
It does not matter if Schwarzenegger was rejected for roles because of his accent, because in the end the actor did the right roles that made him one of the most followed actors in the world, and fans love to imitate his Terminator phrases.
Superman: The Movie can be streamed on Prime Video.
Source: The Things
