Why Will Smith turned down Django role

Will Smith turned down a role in Django Unchained. Picture: Splash Source: news.com.au

Christoph Waltz as Schultz and Jamie Foxx as Django in the film Django Unchained, directed by Quentin Tarantino. Picture: AP Source: Supplied

IT was nominated for five Oscars, grossed over $413 million in theaters worldwide and was Quentin Tarantino's most successful film to date, but Will Smith didn't want to be a part of it.

Smith has revealed he turned down the part of Django Freeman - played by Jamie Foxx - because it was not the lead role in the film.

"Django wasn’t the lead," he told Entertainment Weekly, "so it was like, I need to be the lead. The other character was the lead!"

The "other character" he was referring to was the bounty hunter - and Django's mentor - Dr. King Schultz played by Christoph Waltz.

Smith said he tried to convince director Quentin Tarantino to give Django a more central role in the film.

"I was like, 'No, Quentin, please, I need to kill the bad guy!'"

While Django is the "emotional core" of the film, it is Waltz's character who kills the evil slave owner, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, in the end.

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Which celeb turned down Shrek role?

Source: Supplied

NICHOLAS Cage said he turned down the lead role in DreamWorks? original Shrek movie because he didn?t want to look like a ogre.

The actor said he was originally approached to portray the big green monster - a role which eventually went to funnyman Mike Myers - when the directors were putting the flick together in 2001.

"We were talking about Shrek and I just didn’t want to look like an ogre," the 49-year-old Con Air star explained. "Maybe I should have done it looking back."

You think, Nick?

Considering you've done no films of notable worth in the last few years, we'd say not taking the lead role in a franchise which has enjoyed numerous sequels and much box office success would be high on your regret list. 

Lucky for Cage, the executives at DreamWorks didn't hold any grudges when they cast him in their new animation movie The Croods which is set to be a big hit. 

Cage plays the character Grug, an overprotective father who must learn to let go of his fears.

While Grug may not be much prettier than Shrek, we're sure you won't hear Cage complaining this time around. 

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