Tom Cruise boasts one of the most impressive resumes in Hollywood. Throughout his 40-plus year career, Cruise has starred in some truly iconic movies, helping to create characters that stand the test of time. For every major role an actor takes on, there are several more that they are either overlooked for or turned down. Tom Cruise is no exception, and we thought it was time to review some roles this ageless actor could have taken on.
10 Indecent Proposal (1993)
This 1993 romantic drama starring Robert Redford, Demi Moore, and Woody Harrelson was released to fairly negative critical reviews despite earning a decent box office draw. Perhaps the film would have fared better had Harrelson's role of David Murphy had gone to Tom Cruise as had originally been intended. Cruise's popularity was on the rise in the early '90s, and the film could have certainly capitalized on this. The actor instead opted to star in the legal thriller, The Firm, which received critical acclaim due in part to the actor's performance.
9 The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)
Before David Fincher and Brad Pitt signed on to make The Curious Case of Benjamin Button that we know today. Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise nearly collaborated to make the film themselves. Seeing Bard Pitt as an age-altered Benjamin Button was enough of a stretch for moviegoers; trying to picture Tom Cruise in this role creates all kinds of confusion. This is a situation where things turned out best for all parties involved.
8 Ghost (1990)
Coming off of his butt kicking role in Roadhouse, the director of Ghost, Jerry Zucker had a hard time seeing Patrick Swayze in the more subdued role of Sam Wheat. Tom Cruise, along with a laundry list of other stars were sought out for the role before it ultimately did go to Swayze. Cruise would go on to star in Days of Thunder, directed by fellow Top Gun collaborator, Tony Scott.
7 Wall Street (1987)
The role of Bud Fox that eventually went to Charlie Sheen in the Oliver Stone classic, Wall Street, was a coveted role that Tom Cruise was after. Unfortunately for him, Stone had already cast Sheen in the movie, and the rest is history. Wall Street would go on to enjoy great critical success becoming one of Stone's best movies.
6 Donnie Brasco (1997)
This crime drama starring Al Pacino and Johnny Depp nearly has Tom Cruise taking on Depp's character, of Donnie Brasco. Unfortunately, the production schedule did not align with Cruise's schedule, and he went on to film Stanley Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut with his real life wife, Nicole Kidman.
5 Edward Scissorhands (1990)
Tom Cruise as Edward Scissorhands sounds more like a bad joke than an actual casting that almost came to be. Director Tim Burton met with Cruise about the role, despite Burton being more than cautious that Cruise was not right for the role. It ultimately went to Johnny Depp and the rest is history. In this case, everything worked out for the best.
4 A Beautiful Mind (2001)
Before Ron Howard and Russell Crowe would go on to direct and star in the Oscar-winning A Beautiful Mind, Robert Redford and Tom Cruise were set to bring the film to life. Cruise ultimately had to choose between films to star in, and A Beautiful Mind was not the one. He would go on to star in Vanilla Sky in its place, a film that obtained much less success than this award-winning film.
3 Footloose (1984)
All the Right Moves, ever heard of it? If you have, you are quite the movie buff. This sports drama is the film Tom Cruise starred in when production on a little film called Footloose clashed with its production. It is hard to imagine anyone else playing Ren McCormack other than Kevin Bacon.
2 Iron Man (2008)
There was once a time when the up-and-coming Marvel Studios had reservations about casting Robert Downey Jr. as the billionaire, playboy, philanthropist, Tony Stark, and little to no expectations for the film overall. With rumors surrounding Tom Cruise possibly playing Iron Man for years prior, naturally, those rumors began to swirl again when the first Iron Man was in pre-production. With Cruise not being able to commit as fully to the role as he would want, the part did end up going to Downey Jr. Helping to make Marvel the modern age blockbuster machine, and the studio's decision to trust Downey truly paid off.
1 The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
It has been long rumored that other directors offered large sums of money to the eventual director of The Shawshank Redemption, Frank Darabont, to not make the film, so they could. Rob Reiner was one of these reported names and the director wanted to make the film himself with Tom Cruise in the role. Darabont did end up directing the movie with Tim Robbins in the leading role and thus one of the greatest prison escape movies in history was made. The film is as popular today as ever and is widely considered to be one of cinema's most memorable movies.