More often than not, Hollywood actors pass on roles they would soon regret, but not Mark Wahlberg. The Transformers star revealed he turned down an Oscar-worthy film because he was totally grossed out, and it goes against his Catholic faith.
Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain (2005) earned several awards, including Best Director and Best Original Score, and nominations for Heath Ledger (Best Actor) and Jake Gyllenhaal (Best Supporting Actor), respectively. Wahlberg was considered for a part, but the actor saw it wasn’t suitable for him.
Mark Wahlberg Only Says Yes To Movie Projects Approved By His Religious Mentor
In a 2007 interview with WENN via Advocate, Mark Wahlberg revealed the reason why he declined the project after reading a couple of pages:
“I met with Ang Lee on that movie, I read 15 pages of the script and got a little creeped out. It was very graphic, descriptive – the spitting on the hand, getting ready to do the thing. I told Ang Lee, ‘I like you, you’re a talented guy, if you want to talk about it more…’ Thankfully, he didn’t… I didn’t rush to see Brokeback, it’s just not my deal… Obviously, it was done in taste – look how it was received.”
As a proclaimed Catholic, Wahlberg was hesitant about the deal because of the gay scenes, a concept that conflicted with his faith. In a report from The National Enquirer via Advocate, an insider revealed that Wahlberg usually consults his longtime friend and mentor, Rev. James Flavin, in choosing movie roles:
“Mark is a practicing Catholic, and he never makes a final decision on a starring role until Father Flavin gives his OK. Father Flavin pushes Mark to honor his religious roots. Even though Mark was offered one of the leads in Brokeback Mountain, he passed because of the gay subject matter, which clashes with Catholic doctrine.”
In the same year, Mark Wahlberg clarified his passing on the role and admitted that he was only downplaying the fact that Ang Lee never offered the role to him. He revealed meeting with the director, although the latter never actually offered him the part. Wahlberg said that no one refuses an opportunity to work with someone like Ang Lee.
The 51-year-old star admitted that he was only trying to “make light” of the fact that the filmmaker did not see his potential for the role.
Mark Wahlberg Almost Refused Another Oscar-Winning Film
Brokeback Mountain isn’t the only movie Mark Wahlberg refused to star in. The Lone Survivor actor almost declined Martin Scorsese’s The Departed (2006), which also features Matt Damon, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Jack Nicholson.
In an interview with GQ, Wahlberg recalled turning down the offer the first time:
“It was one of those things where I wasn’t committed to making the movie, but my agent told Marty that I was. Marty called me up acting like he was so excited about us making this movie together, and I said, ‘I’m not doing the movie.’”
Scorsese must have wanted the actor so badly that he spoke with him and proposed to give Wahlberg the freedom to improvise. That trick did the magic.
Brokeback Mountain and The Departed are available on Prime Video, Apple TV, and Netflix.
Sources: WENN, The National Enquirer via Advocate, GQ
