notstarring.com notstarring.com
Find your favorite actors or movies:
Olivia De Havilland  «   » 
 Roles turned down by Olivia De Havilland:

Affectionately Yours
De Havilland was thought of for this Lubitsch movie but she was busy making other movies at the time.
Actor who got the part: Merle Oberon

Anna and the King of Siam
De Havilland wanted to play this role very much, along with many other actresses.
Actor who got the part: Irene Dunne

Butterflies Are Free
According to Eileen Heckart's son's biography of his mother, De Havilland, Ingrid Bergman, and Angela Lansbury were all serious candidates for this role. But in the end Eileen Heckart reprised her stage role and won an Oscar for it.
Actor who got the part: Eileen Heckart

Dial M for Murder
Olivia De Havilland wanted too much money to star in the thriller directed by Alfred Hitchcock.
Actor who got the part: Grace Kelly

The Facts of Life
According to 'Lucy at the Movies' by Cindy De la Haz, this movie was originally to have been more of a "Brief Encounter" drama with Olivia De Havilland in the lead.
Actor who got the part: Lucille Ball

The Hard Way
Warner Bros originally planned Olivia de Havilland to star as Helen Chernen, the ambitious woman who manipulates to make her sister a Broadway star.
Actor who got the part: Ida Lupino

I Confess
Alfred Hitchcock wanted De Havilland to play the married woman still in love with a man from her past, who has become a priest. The role became minimized, so a star of De Havilland's stature was not required.
Actor who got the part: Anne Baxter

It's a Wonderful Life
De Havilland was one of the many major actresses at the time offered the role of Mary Bailey, opposite her former real life sweetheart Jimmy Stewart. She rejected it, taking an Oscar winning role instead in to Each His Own. It was the third role Frank Capra thought of her for, but unfortunately they never worked with each other.
Actor who got the part: Donna Reed

Ivy
Olivia De Havilland was originally cast as the murderous Ivy Lexton, but later withdrew, and was replaced by her sister, Joan Fontaine.
Actor who got the part: Joan Fontaine

Kings Row
De Havilland was offered the role of Cassandra Towers in this film, but she was not able to make it as she was too busy shooting two other films simultaneously already.
Actor who got the part: Betty Field

The Maltese Falcon
Was pursued for the role of the dangerous -- or is she? -- "Brigid O'Shaughnessey."
Actor who got the part: Mary Astor

Mission to Moscow
Was thought of for the much older role of the American ambassador's wife.
Actor who got the part: Ann Harding

Rebecca
Olivia de Havilland was one of Hitchcock's final choices but she refused the starring role when she learned that her sister Joan Fontaine was also being considered.
Actor who got the part: Joan Fontaine

Saturday's Children
After Jane Bryan refused the role and retired, Miss De Havilland turned down the part. Ironically, she would later play in the radio adaptation of the film.
Actor who got the part: Anne Shirley

Shadow of a Doubt
Director Alfred Hitchcock had the lovely star in mind to play the young smalltown girl who begins to suspect that her dashing uncle is a murderer.
Actor who got the part: Teresa Wright

A Streetcar Named Desire
Olivia De Havilland turned down the role of Blanche duBois.
Actor who got the part: Vivien Leigh

The Towering Inferno
Olivia de Havilland turned down the role of Lisollette Mueller.
Actor who got the part: Jennifer Jones

A Woman's Face
According to Charlotte Chandler's biography of Alfred Hitchcock, De Havilland was considered for this movie when it was to have been directed by Hitchcock.
Actor who got the part: Joan Crawford






Did you know that Olivia De Havilland was not the only choice for these movies? (click to learn more)
» Airport '77
» Gone with The Wind
» Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte
» My Cousin Rachel
» The Snake Pit
» That Lady
» They Died with Their Boots On
» To Each His Own

Take Today's Quiz
before they were famous






 Other Popular Actors: