TOP 5 MOST ANNOYING CASTING SWITCHES

I don’t know about you but one thing that drives me crazy is when producers of a film decide to make a casting switch in sequels for popular movies. That is, they bring in a new actor to play a part in a sequel that was played by another actor in the original film. I think it annoys me more than anything because, having ADD, it completely distracts me and takes me out of the film.

We talked about it a bit on the latest MILFcast and I thought it was a good enough topic to require it’s own list. So, here’s the Top 5 that annoy me the most (in order):

5. THE MATRIX RELOADED & REVOLUTIONS (Character: The Oracle)

This one only comes in at #5 because the Wachowskis didn’t really have a choice since Gloria Foster died before the filming of the trilogy was completed. They also did a nice job of weaving Mary Alice into the story under the guise that the Oracle looked different because she was in hiding from Agent Smith and needed a disguise. Still, it always throws me a bit as Alice lacks alot of Foster’s warmth.

4. BACK TO THE FUTURE 1 & 2 (Character: Jennifer)

This one is almost unnoticable as the part of Marty’s girlfriend in the first film is very small but when the second film picks up right where the first left off, Elizabeth Shue’s presence is a bit jarring. I like Shue but she is essentially knocked unconscious for the remainder of the film so I always wonder if this was really necessary. Apparently, the original actress to portray Jennifer, Claudia Wells, had some personal problems that kept her from taking part in the sequels.

3. IRON MAN 1 & 2 (Character: Rhodey)

I don’t know if many of you know this but Terrence Howard was the highest paid actor for Iron Man. That’s right! He made more than Gwenyth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges and even RDJ himself. The reason he was replaced lies somewhere between monetary negotiations for the second film and the fact that Jon Favreau and the producers thought his acting was sub-par and many of his scenes had to be reshot.

Personally, I like Howard and probably like Cheadle a bit more but think they’re pretty much interchangeable for this part. I’m just bummed this distraction falls in the middle of what turned out to be one of the most surprisingly good comic book franchises to hit the big screen.

2. BATMAN BEGINS & THE DARK KNIGHT (Character: Rachel Dawes)

To further prove what great decision making skills she has, Katie Holmes begged to be let out of the much loved follow-up to Batman Begins to pursue other projects… and by other projects I mean Mad Money with Diane Keaton and Queen Latifah. Yeah… let that one sink in a beat!

Guess she hated her acting in Begins as much as we did. Truthfully, we all know Maggie Gyllenhaal is a better actor and that Holmes’ performance was wooden at best. Still, the part of Rachel Dawes was pretty shallow throughout both films and I would’ve liked Holmes to stay on for nothing more than continuity… and the chance to watch her blow up. Um, Spoiler Alert!

1. HARRY POTTER: THE FIRST ONES & THE LAST ONES (Character: Dumbledore)

Once again we have a no fault situation here. Simply, Richard Harris died before all of the films could be made and he was replaced by Michael Gambon who I typically like alot. However, Gambon lacks Harris’ compassion and Santa-like qualities that caused everybody to love Dumbledore like he was their Grandfather. Not to mention the calming, raspy voice. When Gambon first took over, I remember thinking, he made Dumbledore look like kind of a dick. He’s grown on me and has done a good job with the part but I’ll always prefer DD #1!