Why Amanda Seyfried Turned Down Guardians Of The Galaxy
Amanda Seyfried recently spoke candidly and honestly about why she decided to turn down a role in the firs Guardians of the Galaxy.
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Amanda Seyfried isn’t known, in any way, as a superhero or action actress. That much isn’t new. But it doesn’t mean that it didn’t almost happen. This is Hollywood after all and we’ve seen many actors and actresses who appeared to be in a certain, dramatic lane, make a quick and marked shift to big-budget franchises when the opportunity struck. But not Seyfried and now we know there’s a reason she never got into the superhero game. Apparently, the actress was offered a part in the Marvel Cinematic Universe but flat out turned it down.
The news about Amanda Seyfried eschewing the opportunity to join a billion-dollar franchise was of her own volition. She recently sat down with AP for an interview and was incredibly candid around her choices when it came to certain types of films and why, specifically, she turned down a role in Guardians of the Galaxy. Check out what Seyfried had to say, first about superhero movies in general:
“I don’t imagine there are many agents who don’t feel like their clients wouldn’t benefit from a big superhero movie. I’ve really had to push against it. I get it. I think superhero movies are wonderful, and you can be transported to this incredible world that doesn’t exist. And it’s really good for kids, I think, as they’re getting older. But I have no interest in being that physical, and being that much of a trip to my imagination every day. I’m not a fan of green screen. I’m just not. I want to have fun when I’m working. And so that has been that cloud that’s been looming over me for my entire career, and I don’t know when it’ll ever go away. But it’s okay because at the end of the day, my agents trust me and they know that it’s not for everybody.”
From a high level, Amanda Seyfried gives very solid reasons for not wanting to enter into the superhero world. She covers almost all of the specifics and details around why an actress wouldn’t want to enter into a commitment to be part of these productions. It’s basically of the, I like to watch them, but they aren’t for me to work in, variety. If she wasn’t going to be in the right headspace to play an outlandish character or even get in front of the green screen every day, then why bother?
And then Amanda Seyfried went on to talk about Guardians of the Galaxy and how close she was to having a role in that film:
“I didn’t want to be part of the first Marvel move that bombed. I said, ‘Who wants to see a movie about a talking tree and a raccoon?’ Which is clearly – I was very wrong. The script was great, it was all based on not wanting to be ‘that guy’. Because if you’re the star of a giant movie like that, and it bombs, Hollywood does not forgive you. I’ve seen that happen to people and it was a giant, giant fear. I thought, is it worth it?”
Now, this is even MORE honest if that’s even possible. It’s a window into an actress’s reasoning by flat out turning down a role and then *gasp* admitting they were wrong about it. You simply don’t see this kind of thing that much out of Hollywood, and honestly, it’s very refreshing. Amanda Seyfried doesn’t hold back in saying that she thought the movie was going to stink and didn’t want to be associated with a major flop. She even points out the specific parts of contention like how they are potentially silly characters.
It’s easy to see now why this was folly after the fact but remember, at the time the Guardians of the Galaxy were definitely a B-level group of Marvel superheroes. They’ve since become something much more, but it’s worth it to think back to before the first movie came out. There was, for sure, some risk here and Amanda Seyfried admitted not being able to fully see the potential. It’s hard to blame her.
When Amanda Seyfried turned down the role of Gamora, it ultimately went to Zoe Saldana who obviously crushed the part. And it isn’t like Seyfried has been left out in the casting cold since backing out of a billion-dollar franchise. She’s steadily worked since in roles like 2018’s Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, The Art of Racing in the Rain, and most recently in Mank about the development of Citizen Kane.
Coming up, Amanda Seyfried has a couple of other movies in the works. She’ll star alongside James Norton in the thriller Things Heard & Seen. And then she’ll star in A Mouthful of Air about an artist struggling with postpartum depression. Still no superhero movies in the works, but maybe after this past experience and her quote, she could find a way to have a change of heart. There are none in the pipeline now, but that could change in the future.
