"Thank God I Did Not Get That Part": 17 TV Actors Who Auditioned For One Role, But Got A Totally Different One

"And thank god I did not get that part. Could you imagine not having [ Chandra Wilson ]? Forget it," Sandra said at a panel at PaleyFest LA in 2006.

She continued, saying, "At the time, I was practicing for asking what I wanted in my life, which I still practice today. And I saw the part of Cristina Yang — the part was for Cristina — and I wanted to do that part. So even though Shonda [Rhimes], Peter [Horton], and Betsy [Beers] wanted me to come in for the part of Bailey, I said, 'No, I want to come in on Cristina.'"

Shondaland producer Betsy Beers revealed at the ATX TV Festival in 2016 that Jessica even did a chemistry read with Patrick Dempsey, adding, "We fell in love with Jessica Capshaw."

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, talking about working on the series now and the show's long history, Zach explained , "I also had a bit of a bittersweet relationship with [ Criminal Minds ] because it was one of my first auditions I ever had. I was so convinced I was going to book a series regular on a show and it was going to be so cool, and I didn't get it."

He added, "I think it was probably for Matthew [Gray Gubler]'s part, just based on what parts were options."

"The younger version of myself was really freaked out that that’s what they wrote,” Liza said at a Gilmore Girls panel when talking about how she was initially concerned that they immediately thought she could play someone so brash and competitive. She added, "I couldn’t fathom that they would think that they could do that! But now I think it’s really flattering, and I’m really glad."

In an interview with the New Yorker, Jeremy recalled , "I thought, Oh, wow, Roman is such a cool part . He’s, like, this bon-vivant prick. I could do something that I hadn't done before ." Executive producer Adam McKay even asked which role he connected with the most, and Jeremy told him Roman.

Stephanie explained in an interview with BUILD that she went in to read for Amy because she was a Latina character in the script. However, the casting director thought Stephanie would be better for the role of "Megan," who later turned into Rosa.

"I think that role was always supposed to be Melissa's. It was always supposed to be Melissa Fumero's role, and it's just so lucky that I got to read for it because then I got to read for this other role of Megan," Stephanie said. She also added she felt more "comfortable" in that character.

In an interview with Vulture, Annie explained how Abby Elliot was attached to play Alexis before she ultimately had to drop out. So, Annie came in and auditioned for Alexis, but also Stevie.

"I auditioned for Alexis and I got a call from Dan [Levy] after my first audition, asking me to also audition for Stevie. So I ended up testing for both of those ladies, and it was super fun to be able to play different characters," she recalled.

In an interview with Oprah Mag , Jonathan said, "It wasn’t until I was talking to the production company and Chris Van Dusen, the showrunner, and at the end of the meeting we’d spoken about family, and men in society, and women in society, and our own personal experiences. And they said, 'Have you thought about Anthony? We’re gonna send you some scripts to read because we think you might be an Anthony.'"

She told Oprah Mag , "I first auditioned for Lady Danbury. But it went to the marvelous, marvelous Adjoa Andoh, who is a dear friend. Then they came back and said, 'Would you attend a self-taping for Queen Charlotte?'"

When the audition for Francesca came around, with Hannah ultimately replacing Ruby Stokes, it was very top-secret, and she didn't know what show or character she was exactly auditioning for.

In an interview with Shondaland, Hannah added , "I auditioned for season one, so when I did a taped audition again for season three, I’d grown to love the show as a fan. But I didn’t know I was auditioning for Bridgerton at the time. It was just one scene; literally, no idea what it was for."

In an interview with Variety, Chance said , "I came into this as a fan of The Boys; I actually had originally auditioned for Hughie years ago. I read it, and I thought it was such a great script. And I was like, 'Whether I get it or not, I still want to watch the show.'"

He added, "Then I watched The Boys , and I think, ‘Wow, this has never been done; it’s amazing.’ So then to get Andre was such a blessing because I come into it and I get to enjoy the playground that is The Boys universe."

In an interview with Live with Kelly and Ryan , Joe said he "sent a tape in" for the role of Jonathan and hadn't heard anything for months, so he assumed he wasn't going to book the job.

Then, he said they wanted him to tape for "this other role," and he was initially like, "What?! The jerky boyfriend?"

On an episode of the Drama Queens podcast, James explained , "I didn't get Lucas and then I went and read for Nathan, and I went through a series of auditions for Nathan. At a certain point in the audition process it got through to me through back channels that I was too nice, I was not hard enough to be this guy, but they liked me." He worked with an acting coach, tested five times, and then eventually booked the job.

He also said how he immediately connected with the show because he loved basketball, has a brother, and grew up in a small town.

In an interview with Ocean Drive per Teen Vogue, Shay said she also initially faced criticism after being cast as Emily. She recalled, "The criticism started when I first went into the PLL role and [the critics said], 'Oh, she doesn’t look anything like the character. The character is supposed to have red hair, fair complexion, and freckles; she looks nothing like that.'"

Shay added, "The world is a melting pot now. It’s no longer the typical American girl with blonde hair and blue [eyes]."

In an interview with Collider's Ladies Night , Samantha explained , "I'm not Natalie and that's totally fine, and she's amazing. It's so weird when you audition for a different character, and then you see how somebody else does it, and you're like, ‘Yes!’ Because there's other times where you see it and you're like, ‘Really? That’s what they went with?’ But this was definitely a win for our show having Sophie Thatcher."

She added, "She's incredible. I can't even touch what she’s got going on."

In an interview on Inside of You , Paul said the audition process for TVD was "hell," adding, "This was the worst experience of my life."

He continued, saying he tested for some other shows and eventually got a "frantic" phone call that the studio had done multiple rounds of testing and could not find "anybody" for the role of Stefan. Then, he went in, read for it, tested alongside 14 other potential Stefan actors, and shooting ultimately began a week or so later.

In 2015, she tweeted in response to a fan asking if she first auditioned for Sasha, "I did not, I originally auditioned for Michonne."