Evan Rachel Wood Turned Down 'Mean Girls' & Her Reason Makes Total Sense
In today's "what could have been" casting news, a certain Westworld star is revealing how they chose not to be in one of the most iconic teen movies of all time. Nope, Anthony Hopkins was not supposed play Bender in The Breakfast Club. Evan Rachel Wood turned down Mean Girls. The actress explained to Jimmy Fallon that she not only auditioned for Tina Fey's coming-of-age masterpiece, she got the job and ultimately rejected the role. But why, Evan? Well, turns out she had a pretty good reason for passing up the Plastics.
"I turned it down," a repentant Wood explained on The Tonight Show. “But listen. Here. There’s a good reason. The only reason is because I was already supposed to do a film called Pretty Persuasion that was set in a high school, that was very Heathers-esque, and it was very similar. And I was already kind of doing that. So I was like, ‘I can’t.’"
Unfortunately, Pretty Persuasion didn't become quite the pop culture phenomenon that Mean Girls did... though Evan is clearly doing just fine these days without the acting credit on her accomplished resume. But like any performer with good taste, she still has hopes of working with the great Tina Fey someday. Tina, are you listening?!
“Tina, if you’re here, I’m so sorry we got off on the wrong foot,” Wood added. “As long as the next movie you’re doing is not about a robot uprising, I will happily do it.”
It's difficult to conceive of a Mean Girls where anything — particularly the actors involved — could have played out at all differently. Fun fact: Ashley Tisdale reportedly auditioned for Karen, but if the Sliding Doors theory holds up at all, does that mean there's a possibility she might never have played Sharpay in High School Musical? Um, I'm cool with the outcome that went down.
Lindsay Lohan actually auditioned for Regina George, but director Mark Waters had other plans in mind. Lohan told EW:
I wanted to play Regina. I had just played — in Confessions and Freaky —not the cool girl in school. I was still 17 years old and I wanted to be the cool girl on set. So I had a war with him, and he goes, “No, Cady is the heroine, and that’s who you are.” Then I sat in all the auditions.
Mean Girls is approaching its 15-year anniversary next year and since the film's release, Evan Rachel Wood has gone on to become a huge Hollywood name. After starring in films like The Wrestler and appearing in shows like True Blood, the actress/musician earned an Emmy nomination for HBO's Westworld last year.
Westwold is approaching its second season's premiere, which airs on HBO this Sunday, April 22. Wood has been teasing what's in store for her Host character Dolores, explaining to ET, “I think she definitely wants her freedom, and she wants access to the world that's been denied to her. I don't know if her endgame is destroying it yet or not. I think that's something we're gonna explore a bit more.”
Evan opened up further to Jimmy Fallon about Dolores' future in Season 2. "She's quite awake this season. She's no longer under anyone's control. So, she's redefining herself. And she is pissed. To say the least," the 30-year-old hinted.
I doubt Tina Fey has a robot revolution project in the works (although, you never know), so maybe she'll give Evan Rachel Wood a ring regarding a possible collaboration? A lot of time has gone by since the opportunity was presented and Evan is clearly open to making things right after picking another film over Tina's. Hey, she can't help it that she's so popular!
