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You’ll Never Believe That The Late Michael Jackson Auditioned for This ‘X-Men’ Role

June 12, 2022

Michael Jackson remains to be one of the most talented singers of all time and even though he passed away over a decade ago, almost everyone, young and old, knows who he is and his songs. However, that doesn’t mean he was a perfect human being – despite his iconic hits, he is also known for his controversies.

Becoming an Actor

However, one of the lesser known facts about the ‘King of Pop’ is that he used to want to become an actor. He was so serious about transitioning to a thespian that he auditioned for roles.

Apparently, the ‘Man in the Mirror’ hitmaker wanted to play Charles Xavier in the ‘X-Men’ franchise, producer Lauren Schuler Donner revealed. In an interview, she recalled the conversation she had with Michael about the casting.

Vicki L. Miller / Shutterstock | Michael brought a presentation with him to convince studio execs

Lauren clarified to the highly celebrated musician that Professor X was written as an old Caucasian guy, to which Michael said he could apply makeup. The cultural icon met with ‘X-Men’ director Bryan Singer and his team in 1999 in the old office of Fox.

Michael, who was then wearing sunglasses and refused handshakes with anyone, made it clear that he wanted to be Professor X. In fact, he even brought a presentation that included a short film titled ‘Ghost,’ which was based on a Stephen King tale, to convince the ‘X-Men’ producers to hire him.

DFree / Shutterstock | Patrick Stewart bagged the role

In the movie, Michael played two roles: a Mayor in his 60s and a magician. However, the studio responsible for the highly successful franchise never considered the singer for the role of Professor X.

As we all know, the dashing and ever-talented actor Patrick Stewart was cast and he went on to play the part in seven films, the last of which was in 2017’s ‘Logan.’

Celebs Who Auditioned But Didn’t Get The Part

Although Michael didn’t get to join the mutants in ‘X-Men,’ he did get to have a successful career in music, sans the allegations thrown at him. Besides, he was hardly the first to audition for a big role and got rejected.

DFree / Shutterstock | Millie Bobbie Brown wanted to be Logan’s daughter

Millie Bobbie Brown, whose breakout role is Eleven on ‘Stranger Things,’ auditioned to play Wolverine’s daughter in ‘Logan.’ The part eventually went to newcomer Dafne Keen.

Scarlett Johansson, meanwhile, wanted to become Judy in the adventure film ‘Jumanji.’ However, she lost the role to Kristen Dunst, who, at the time, was already known for her work in ‘Interview with the Vampire.’

John Krasinski of ‘The Office’ wanted to be Captain America, but we all know that the character is played by hunk Chris Evans.

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