Iconic Roles Meant For Someone Else
Everyone is familiar with Viggo Mortensen's captivating portrayal of Aragorn, the Ranger of the north who becomes the King of Gondor during the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Prior to Mortensen taking up the blade of Anduril, Aragorn was originally supposed to be played by Stuart Townsend, who spent two months training before he was let go. Townsend would go on to star in Queen of the Damned and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen shortly thereafter, but he didn't look back on his brush with Middle-earth fondly. "I did get shafted up the ass," he told Entertainment Weekly. "I was there rehearsing and training for two months, then was fired the day before filming began.