Oprah Winfrey may be one of the most successful talk show hosts, but she is also a brilliant actress. Although her filmography isn’t as big as some of the greatest movie stars, her skills as an actress outshine her in various ways. She has not only been nominated for an Oscar but also allowed her to pick and choose the projects she wishes to do.
She mostly limits herself to being a talk show host, but will occasionally look into projects that pique her attention. From writing books to being a producer, she has no lack of talent and it only benefits her more and more. Winfrey is one of the most famous people in the world. However, this fame may have cost her a role she had been hoping to get.
Oprah Winfrey Was Denied A Role Because She Was Too Famous
Oprah Winfrey’s massive success allows her to be flexible with the movies and projects she chooses to be a part of. She has done movies like A Wrinkle in Time, The Color Purple, and Selma. However, one role she wanted was in 2008’s Doubt. The movie starred Meryl Streep and she was really looking forward to being in the movie but was denied a role.
“I wanted to be in ‘Doubt’ … the director told me ‘no,’ because [the screen time] wasn’t long enough to lose the Oprah factor.”
The reason for this was her fame. The role was much smaller in comparison to her fame and to hire her for a role of such little magnitude would have only backfired. The director felt that if the role were to be given to her, they would have had to increase the significance of her character greatly, something they wanted to avoid. Instead, the role was given to Viola Davis, who was still merely an up-and-coming actor at that time.
Could Oprah Winfrey’s Fame Really Overshadow The Entire Film?
The irony about rejecting Oprah Winfrey for the role was truly visible because the cast was no short of famous actors. Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, and Philip Seymour Hoffman were part of the cast as well. All these actors hold accolades of their own and their fame is not one that can be taken lightly either.
There could have been a possibility, however, about Winfrey’s stardom making the audience think that the role had more to it than intended. It can happen when actors get cast for roles that have little to no significance, in the beginning, to have a major role by the end of the film. Hiring renowned actors for the same can give that away. A very recent example of that can be Rami Malik in Oppenheimer. The same effect could have taken place in the case of Doubt, where the role did not even have as much prominence as fans could have believed.
Source: Adam’s Apple
