Buzz
Hollywood's history is brimming with endless possibilities. Imagine a scenario where James Dean survived his fatal accident or Orson Welles chose to adapt Heart of Darkness over Citizen Kane.
Yet, nothing quite compares to envisioning the alternate realities of beloved films. In some parallel universe, Stanley Kubrick helmed Heathers, Mick Jagger took the lead in A Clockwork Orange, and Roger Corman produced Alien. And these are just the tip of the iceberg.
10. HeathersDirected By Stanley Kubrick
Heathers combines the dark humor of Mean Girls with the gruesome intensity of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. This twisted high school satire follows Winona Ryder and Christian Slater as they unintentionally (and sometimes intentionally) murder their peers, disguising the deaths as suicides. A cult favorite, it’s the kind of film that inspires audience participation. Interestingly, it was almost directed by Stanley Kubrick.
According to the DVD commentary, screenwriter Daniel Waters envisioned the tale as a sprawling three-hour Kubrick masterpiece, capturing the full spectrum of adolescent life. The iconic cafeteria scene draws inspiration from a similar moment in Full Metal Jacket. Even in its final form, the movie pays subtle homage to one of cinema’s most brilliant and eccentric filmmakers.
Though Kubrick predictably declined the project multiple times, it’s fascinating to ponder how his take might have unfolded. His version would likely lack the witty one-liners and be exponentially darker. It’s also easy to picture him retaining the original explosive finale, where the entire school is obliterated.
9. A Clockwork OrangeStarring The Rolling Stones
Featuring Malcolm McDowell as the ruthless teenage gang leader Alex DeLarge, A Clockwork Orange stands as one of Stanley Kubrick’s greatest works. Its visuals are stunningly surreal, and McDowell’s portrayal is utterly captivating. However, the film almost gained fame for another reason: it was initially planned as a starring vehicle for the Rolling Stones.
Mick Jagger initially acquired the rights to Anthony Burgess’s novel for $500, intending to star as Alex while the rest of the Rolling Stones would portray his gang of “Droogs.” The Beatles were set to provide the soundtrack, as they reportedly admired Jagger’s creative vision for the project.
Sadly, the plan fell apart when Jagger sold the rights to producer Si Litvinoff for a substantial profit. The task of adapting the novel for the screen was handed to Terry Southern, known for Easy Rider and Doctor Strangelove, who initially cast David Hemmings as Alex.
Jagger and The Beatles launched a celebrity campaign to reinstate Jagger in the lead role, gathering numerous signatures on a petition sent to Southern’s office. Their efforts were in vain, as the British Board of Film Censorship rejected Southern’s script, ultimately leading Stanley Kubrick to take over the project.
8. FitzcarraldoStarring Mick Jagger
During the early 1980s, Mick Jagger aggressively pursued a role in Werner Herzog’s surreal masterpiece Fitzcarraldo. The film, which tells the story of a deranged colonialist hauling a riverboat over a mountain, is infamous for featuring Klaus Kinski at his most volatile and for Herzog’s insistence on filming the boat-over-mountain sequence without special effects.
Unlike his struggle to land the role of Alex DeLarge, Jagger’s push to join Fitzcarraldo paid off. Herzog cast him alongside Jason Robards, and the duo spent four months filming in South America. Some of the surviving footage is available in the video above. To put it diplomatically, Robards doesn’t match Klaus Kinski’s intensity, and Jagger falls short of Robards’ caliber.
This iteration of the film seemed doomed from the outset. After being entangled in a conflict between Peru and Ecuador, production faced further delays when Robards contracted amebic dysentery. By the time he recovered, Jagger had lost interest and exited the project. Robards chose to remain in the US, leaving the role to Kinski.
7. Total RecallDirected By David Cronenberg
Today, David Cronenberg is seen as a relatively mainstream filmmaker praised by critics. However, in the 1980s, he was a Canadian maverick who reveled in unsettling his audience. Videodrome showcased James Woods engaging with a fleshy TV set, while The Fly was downright revolting (warning: NSFW!). It was this version of Cronenberg who almost directed the 1991 sci-fi classic Total Recall.
Based on a Philip K. Dick novel, the final film follows Arnold Schwarzenegger to Mars, blending action with witty quips. Cronenberg’s take, however, would have retained the Martian setting while plunging the story into such dark and unsettling territory that it might have been unbearable to watch. Cronenberg spent a year on the project, penned up to 12 drafts, and described his version as “intense.” Even the concept art from his vision looks eerily bizarre.
Cronenberg revealed that the producers ultimately dismissed him for crafting a script true to Philip K. Dick’s style. When he argued that was the point, they clarified they wanted “Raiders of the Lost Ark on Mars.” This led Cronenberg to walk away from the project.
6. AlienProduced By Roger Corman
Alien is a deliberate, atmospheric sci-fi horror film that elevated both genres. Roger Corman, known for B-movies like Sharktopus and Death Race 2000, nearly merged his campy style with this iconic franchise in the 1970s, potentially derailing one of cinema’s greatest legacies.
Initial versions of Alien featured an all-male crew and a lighter tone. Described as “Lovecraftian,” it leaned more toward a traditional monster movie than the final product. Corman was captivated by the script, seeing it as “Jaws in space” and a natural addition to his collection of low-budget horror films.
To his credit, Corman had launched the careers of directors like Coppola and Scorsese, so his take on Alien might not have been the disaster one might assume. However, Star Wars changed everything. The success of A New Hope made studios invest seriously in sci-fi, prompting Twentieth Century Fox to fund Alien properly. The result is now legendary.
5. The X-FilesWith Pamela Anderson As Dana Scully
The X-Files was the cultural phenomenon of the 1990s, akin to Game of Thrones, a intricate, ever-evolving series that became essential viewing for anyone wanting to stay culturally relevant. The dynamic between Gillian Anderson’s skeptical FBI agent Dana Scully and David Duchovny’s open-minded Fox Mulder was pivotal to its success. In 2008, Anderson disclosed that producers almost disrupted this iconic duo by initially considering Pamela Anderson for the role of Scully.
Beyond the cast’s chemistry, The X-Files thrived on its realistic tone. While David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson were undeniably attractive, their looks were believable enough to imagine them as actual FBI agents, adding to the show’s authenticity.
Casting Pamela Anderson, known for her slow-motion running scenes, would have shattered the show’s grounded realism. Fox executives initially doubted that someone as relatable as Gillian Anderson could embody Scully, insisting the role required a more “glamorous” presence.
However, Den of Geek proposed an intriguing alternative: pairing Pamela Anderson with David Hasselhoff as Mulder. That’s a version we’d gladly pay to watch.
4. The Twilight Saga: Breaking DawnDirected By Gus Van Sant
Gus Van Sant, the visionary behind Milk and Good Will Hunting, has built his career on blending art-house themes with mainstream appeal. In 2010, the acclaimed director was a top candidate to direct The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, a surprising move for someone of his caliber.
Take a moment to process that. Van Sant is renowned for transforming Shakespearean drama into a queer road trip and crafting a near-silent, two-hour film featuring Matt Damon and Casey Affleck meandering through a barren desert.
The Twilight Saga, in contrast, is famous for its glittering vampires and its ability to ignite awkward teenage crushes. Despite this, Gus Van Sant was not only in the running to direct the final two films but was genuinely enthusiastic about the opportunity.
The sole reason he wasn’t chosen was the producers’ preference for a more predictable director. Van Sant’s unconventional methods and lack of pre-production planning led them to select Bill Condon instead.
3. Return Of The JediDirected By David Lynch
Return of the Jedi concluded the original Star Wars trilogy with a grand space battle and a memorable sequence in a gangster’s lair featuring dancing teddy bears. While often regarded as the weakest of the three, it remains a solid film and unmistakably bears George Lucas’s signature. Now, imagine if David Lynch had directed it—a scenario that nearly became reality.
By 1983, Lynch had only directed two feature films: the slow-burning art-house classic Eraserhead and The Elephant Man. Neither remotely resembled the Star Wars universe in tone or scale. Yet, George Lucas personally pursued Lynch, even flying him to a private location to discuss Wookiees and the film’s vision.
Based on Lynch’s later interviews, it’s clear he was never likely to accept the role. Lucas’s pitch left him thoroughly unimpressed, and he appeared to despise the creatures designed for the movie. However, judging by his 1984 sci-fi project Dune, a Lynch-directed Star Wars would have been far more bizarre and unpredictable than even the prequels. Whether it would have been an improvement, though, is debatable.
2. Raiders Of The Lost ArkStarring Steve Martin
If we were to compile a list of the 10 least suitable actors for Indiana Jones, Steve Martin would undoubtedly rank near the top. This isn’t due to Martin’s lack of talent—his finest works are comedy gold—but because his awkward, neurotic persona is the polar opposite of Indiana Jones’s rugged charm. Yet, Spielberg and Lucas once seriously contemplated casting him in the iconic role.
Martin wasn’t the closest near-miss for Raiders of the Lost Ark. Tom Selleck was officially cast as the lead but was later replaced due to the production company’s reluctance. While Selleck could have pulled off the adventurous archaeologist, he wouldn’t have matched Harrison Ford’s charisma.
Casting Steve Martin would have completely altered the film’s tone. Rather than a nostalgic tribute to classic serials, Raiders would have turned into a comedic spoof. Picture Martin’s deadpan reaction in the famous sword-fighter scene, and it’s hard to argue it wouldn’t have been a catastrophe. Fortunately, Spielberg and Lucas recognized the misstep and abandoned the idea swiftly.
1. Doctor WhoStarring Michael Jackson
Doctor Who is now a global sci-fi phenomenon, but it wasn’t always so successful. By the late 1980s, the 26-year-old series had lost its audience, leading the BBC to cancel it. Aside from a single American-funded TV movie in 1996, the show remained off the air for 16 years.
The 1996 TV movie, featuring Paul McGann as the eighth Doctor, is now part of the show’s official lore. However, if coproducer Paramount had its way, the most bizarre casting choice in television history might have been immortalized in the Whoniverse. The American producers initially wanted Michael Jackson to take on the role.
When plans for a Doctor Who movie emerged in the late 1980s, Michael Jackson was reportedly “very interested” in playing the Doctor. While it’s unclear how far discussions progressed, Paramount was determined to cast Jackson, hoping to replicate the success of 1988’s Moonwalker. Surprisingly, this wasn’t even the studio’s most questionable idea. After Jackson turned them down, Paramount quickly shifted focus to their second choice: Bill Cosby.
