Hollywood Stars Who Were Almost Cast In ‘The Lord of the Rings’

It's hard to imagine anyone other than the original cast in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Yet, before Peter Jackson's movies became a global phenomenon, several famous actors were in the running for some of Middle Earth's most iconic roles. James Corden auditioned to play Samwise Gamgee before he got his breakout role in Gavin and Stacey. He even made it through a couple of audition rounds before losing out to Sean Astin. Astin went on to make The Loyal Hobbit his own. And it's hard to imagine anyone else bringing the same heart to the role. Sir Patrick Stewart, best known as Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek and Professor X in the X-Men franchise, was another name in the mix. Peter Jackson reportedly wanted him to play Gandalf, but Stewart wasn't convinced by the script and turned down the role. That left the door open for his close friend, Sir Ian McKellen, to bring the wizard to life.