Nicolas Cage and Gary Oldman could have appeared in the classic Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels movie.

Via: TheThings

When most people think about Gary Oldman and Nicolas Cage, it is their incredible dedication to their roles that comes to mind first and foremost. That makes perfect sense considering that Oldman once went so far for a performance that he gave himself stomach ulcers and Cage is known for his passion.

Given the fact that both actors are known for their commitment and have been famous for many years, they clearly have been offered loads of roles over the years. Sadly, that unfortunately has resulted in Oldman and Cage missing out on being a part of some beloved movies.

A perfect example of that is that according to reports, Oldman turned down the chance to star in Edward Scissorhands. Even though Cage stars in a lot of roles these days, he also has passed on loads of beloved roles including Neo from The Matrix.

While it may seem weird for fans to envision Cage and Oldman in those roles, it doesn’t seem too shocking they were asked to star in those blockbuster movies. On the other hand, a lot of people will find it shocking that Oldman and Cage could have starred in Dumb and Dumber.

Which Other Actors Were Asked To Star In Dumb And Dumber?

In 1994, Jim Carrey had such an amazing year in Hollywood that he went from largely unknown to a huge star in twelve months. The reason for that is Carrey starred in three comedies that year and all of them were embraced by the masses.

First off, Carrey headlined Ace Ventura: Pet Detective in February and then he followed that up with The Mask in July. Finally, in December Dumb and Dumber was released and became a huge hit for everyone involved.

Via: Instar

As it turns out, if things played out as originally planned, 1994 would have been a different year for Carrey. After all, Carrey wasn’t one of the first actors who were approached about starring in Dumb and Dumber.

When Dumb and Dumber To was released in 2014, the Farrelly Brothers were interviewed by the Hollywood Reporter. Since the Farrellys were responsible for writing and directing both Dumb and Dumber movies, they had a lot to say about the making of both films.

Unsurprisingly, one of the most interesting things that was discussed during that interview was Dumb and Dumber’s casting process. Probably the most amazing thing the brothers revealed about the casting process is that many actors missed out on the film without knowing it.

According to Peter Farrelly, the brothers have learned that many of the actors who they asked to star in Dumb and Dumber never found out about the role. Instead, the actor’s managers saw the title Dumb and Dumber, thought it sounded beneath their client, and passed on their behalf.

Via: Instar

“Occasionally we’ll bump into somebody who will say like, ‘Hey, how come you never offered me a role?’ ‘I offered you Dumb and Dumber.’ And but they never got them. You know, you thought you were being turned down by all the actors, but it’s really the agents just saying, ‘No, he can’t do it, he’s unavailable.’ It’s rare that they actually give it to them.”

Peter then went on to estimate how many actors were asked to star in Dumb and Dumber and the number he threw out is staggering. “So hard to tell how many actually passed, but we were told 100.”

From there, Bobby Farrelly chimed in to estimate how long Dumb and Dumber’s casting process took. “We were trying to cast it for at least a year or two.” While Bobby’s claim about the casting was mind-blowing, Peter disagreed with his brother. “Yeah. Four years. We wrote it four years before it got made.”

According to reports, some of the stars the Farrellys tried to cast in Dumb and Dumber make a lot of sense. After all, they tried to get Steve Martin and Martin Short who are comedy legends and real-life best friends. On the other hand, fans will likely be surprised to know that Gary Oldman and Nicolas Cage were all asked to star in Dumb and Dumber.

Why Nicolas Cage And Gary Oldman Didn’t Star In Dumb And Dumber

When fans learn that Nicolas Cage and Gary Oldman were asked to star in Dumb and Dumber, they may assume both actors instantly rejected the film. As it turns out, that actually isn’t the case.

When it comes to Oldman, there is no way to know why he didn’t star in Dumb and Dumber since he hasn’t talked about passing on the project. With that in mind, some people may assume that Oldman is an example of one of the actors whose agents passed on Dumb and Dumber for them.

Me randomly thinking about how Dumb and Dumber originally was supposed to star Nic Cage and Gary Oldman: pic.twitter.com/pOCSI6bjcW — ? (@RASCALifornia1) January 8, 2022

On the other hand, Cage has explained why he didn’t star in Dumb and Dumber.

For those who don’t know, Cage and Jim Carrey used to be close friends until they “fell out of conversation”. When Cage was interviewed by the Huffington Post, he spoke about wanting to work with Carrey at the time and why he passed on Dumb and Dumber.

“Well, we talked at length about trying to do a movie together. In fact, he wanted me to be in Dumb & Dumber with him. And then I wanted to do a much smaller movie instead called Leaving Las Vegas.”

Source: thethings.com