Matt LeBlanc and More Hollywood Stars Remember Their Worst Auditions

Credit: Matt Crossick/PA Images/INSTARim/Cover Images

Matt LeBlanc and More Hollywood Stars Remember Their Worst Auditions

Everybody makes mistakes! It is impossible for actors not to have a worst audition story after years of trying out for roles — but some stand out more than others. Matt LeBlanc's worst audition earned him the role of Joey Tribbiani on Friends, one of his most famous characters to this day. "I remember I had gone in a bunch of times and I think it was on the final callback, I had gone with a friend of mine to run lines," LeBlanc recalled during the highly anticipated Friends reunion, which debuted on HBOMax in May 2021. "And he said, 'So the show is about friends and being friends? Just a group of friends?' And I said, 'Yeah, kinda!' And he was like, 'Well, we should go out drinking.' I was like, 'Yeah, that's a good idea!'" It turned out not to be such a good idea, however. "To make a long story short, I woke up in the middle of the night at his apartment and had to go to the bathroom," LeBlanc explained. "I got up too fast and I can't believe I'm telling this, but I kind of blacked out — as you do — and fell face-first into the toilet, hit my nose on the bottom of the toilet seat, and a huge chunk of meat came off my nose. And I'm looking in the mirror, it's bleeding, and I'm like, 'Oh, my God. I have to go in for the big callback and [there's] a big ugly scab on my nose.'" As luck would have it, the creator of the show, Marta Kaufmann, found the story behind the injury so true to Joey's character that it scored LeBlanc the role. [jwplayer 83dz1xOn-l3ahXupL] Not all bad auditions ends with a good result, as Jake Gyllenhaal knows all too well. During a 2016 appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Gyllenhaal revealed that he originally tried out for Lord of the Rings. The audition took place over “a conference call from, like, 14 agents” who were excited about the prospect of having him play Frodo, a role that ultimately went to Elijah Wood. “They called me up and they were like, ‘Oh, guess what!’ And I was like, ‘What!’” the Brokeback Mountain actor recalled. “‘… and when they said they needed a hobbit, we thought, Jake!’” Things went downhill during the audition when Gyllenhaal was instructed to only follow “lots of stage directions” — but say “no lines.” His interpretation of the scene was not what director Peter Jackson was looking for. “Literally, Peter Jackson was like, [facepalm],” the October Sky star said, acknowledging that Jackson had some harsh criticism for him at the time. “[He said,] ‘You are the worst actor that I have ever seen. Did anyone tell you you’re supposed to have an accent?'” Scroll down for more fascinating worst audition stories that actors have shared from their pasts: [podcast_block]

Credit: Matt Crossick/PA Images/INSTARim/Cover Images

Matt LeBlanc and More Hollywood Stars Remember Their Worst Auditions

Everybody makes mistakes! It is impossible for actors not to have a worst audition story after years of trying out for roles — but some stand out more than others. Matt LeBlanc's worst audition earned him the role of Joey Tribbiani on Friends, one of his most famous characters to this day. "I remember I had gone in a bunch of times and I think it was on the final callback, I had gone with a friend of mine to run lines," LeBlanc recalled during the highly anticipated Friends reunion, which debuted on HBOMax in May 2021. "And he said, 'So the show is about friends and being friends? Just a group of friends?' And I said, 'Yeah, kinda!' And he was like, 'Well, we should go out drinking.' I was like, 'Yeah, that's a good idea!'" It turned out not to be such a good idea, however. "To make a long story short, I woke up in the middle of the night at his apartment and had to go to the bathroom," LeBlanc explained. "I got up too fast and I can't believe I'm telling this, but I kind of blacked out — as you do — and fell face-first into the toilet, hit my nose on the bottom of the toilet seat, and a huge chunk of meat came off my nose. And I'm looking in the mirror, it's bleeding, and I'm like, 'Oh, my God. I have to go in for the big callback and [there's] a big ugly scab on my nose.'" As luck would have it, the creator of the show, Marta Kaufmann, found the story behind the injury so true to Joey's character that it scored LeBlanc the role. [jwplayer 83dz1xOn-l3ahXupL] Not all bad auditions ends with a good result, as Jake Gyllenhaal knows all too well. During a 2016 appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Gyllenhaal revealed that he originally tried out for Lord of the Rings. The audition took place over “a conference call from, like, 14 agents” who were excited about the prospect of having him play Frodo, a role that ultimately went to Elijah Wood. “They called me up and they were like, ‘Oh, guess what!’ And I was like, ‘What!’” the Brokeback Mountain actor recalled. “‘… and when they said they needed a hobbit, we thought, Jake!’” Things went downhill during the audition when Gyllenhaal was instructed to only follow “lots of stage directions” — but say “no lines.” His interpretation of the scene was not what director Peter Jackson was looking for. “Literally, Peter Jackson was like, [facepalm],” the October Sky star said, acknowledging that Jackson had some harsh criticism for him at the time. “[He said,] ‘You are the worst actor that I have ever seen. Did anyone tell you you’re supposed to have an accent?'” Scroll down for more fascinating worst audition stories that actors have shared from their pasts: [podcast_block]

Credit: Matt Crossick/PA Images/INSTARim/Cover Images

Taylor Swift

A decade after its premiere, the "Cardigan" songstress remembered auditioning for the 2012 movie adaptation of Les Misérables. "Basically I was up for two roles," she recalled on the U.K.'s Graham Norton Show in October 2022. "I had the look of Cosette and the range vocally of Éponine, so it was established I was there for a good time but not for a long time. I wasn't going to get the role."

Auditioning alongside Eddie Redmayne as Marius was a "nightmare" for Swift. "When I got there they put me in full 19th century street urchin costume and told me they were going to paint my teeth brown and I was like, 'You are going to do that after I meet Eddie Redmayne, right?'" she said. "They made me look like death. ... When I met Eddie I didn't open my mouth to speak!"

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Hugh Jackman

The Australia native revealed that he auditioned for Sandra Bullock's love interest in Miss Congeniality — a role that ultimately went to Benjamin Bratt.

"No one knew X-Men yet. I was a nobody," Jackson told Variety in October 2022. He explained that he'd been surprised to see Bullock when he walked into the audition. "It was the first time I'd tested [with another actor]. I was impressed that she was in there. I didn't expect her to be in there. I'm guessing eight people she tested with," he said.

The Greatest Showman star recalled that the Blind Side actress was "amazing" and that he felt unprepared in comparison. "I was pedaling as fast as I could, but I didn't know the script well enough," he told the outlet.

Jackson described the experience as "humiliating," especially because his agent had told him to land the role just so they could use it as a bargaining chip for another movie he was doing. 

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Zoey Dutch

The Set It Up actress auditioned for Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games franchise, a role that ultimately went to Jennifer Lawrence.

During an August 2022 appearance on the "Lights Camera Barstool" podcast, Dutch revealed that she "knew she didn't get" the role after the screen test because of a comment made by someone involved in the casting process.

"He was like, ‘Why don't you read this other part?' ... Yeah, that one was a little painful," she said.

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Courteney Cox

Most fans consider the Friends star's cameo in Bruce Springsteen's music video for "Dancing In the Dark" to be iconic, but she has a much more humiliating memory tied to it. "I went in to [director] Brian De Palma's office, he put on the music and said, 'Will you dance?'" Cox recalled during a March 2022 appearance on The Howard Stern Show. "It was so embarrassing. I think that's why I got it, because I was [nervous] ... I think that's what they wanted, a fan that just couldn't believe it." Though working with The Boss was an "incredible" experience, Cox confessed that she doesn't like watching the video back. "I mean, God, did you see my dance? It was pathetic," she said. "I'm not a bad dancer, but that was horrible. I was so nervous."

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Chris Evans

The Marvel star's worst audition experience came as a result of him feeling starstruck by Ben Affleck.

"I walked in and I'm walking down the halls looking for this room, and as I passed a room I heard, 'There he is.' In my head I was like, 'That's Ben,'" he explained to Backstage in September 2011. "I turned around and it was, and for some reason, I instantly was nervous. I went in and shook his hand, and the first thing I said was, 'Hey, how ya doing — am I gonna be ok where I parked?' And he said, 'Where'd you park?' And I said, 'At one of the meters.' And he said, 'Did you put money in it?' And I said, 'Yeah.' And he said, 'I think you'll be all right.'

That awkward introduction led Evans' to struggle the entire time he auditioned for 2007’s Gone Baby Gone, directed by Affleck himself. 

"From that moment, I just wanted to get the f--k out of the room. I just wanted to be anywhere but there. I sat down with my heart beating out of my chest, I was so mortified that I started this meeting off that way. I started giving him one-word answers," he shared.

Evans added: "They put me in a rocking chair, so I'm just rocking and twisting, just nervous. 'So, what was your last movie like?' 'Good.' 'What was it like to work with Danny Boyle?' 'Good.' I just wanted to get out of there. It was horrible, a complete disaster. So obviously, I did not get that job."

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Dakota Johnson

"I had an audition, and I got really into it, got really into the scene and it was really dramatic and I took my shirt off, and then you didn’t have to do that," Johnson told The Hollywood Reporter in November 2012. "And then afterwards, they were like, 'Uh, that was great. That was really nice,' and I was like, 'Thank you,' and had to pick my shirt up off the floor and still talk to them and put it back on. It was inappropriate. And also still embarrassing, and I'm more embarrassed that I just told that story."

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Chris Hemsworth

The Thor star revealed that he almost didn't get the Marvel role because of audition nerves.

"I was intimidated by the director, Kenneth Branagh. To me, he is Shakespeare. My brother, Liam [Hemsworth], was luckier. He was one of the final five guys up for the part," Chris explained to W Magazine in January 2014.

The Ghostbusters actor tried out again when the casting agents struggled to find anyone the first time around.

"My manager said, 'If you liked Liam, maybe you'll also like his older brother.' That time, I was pissed off. I didn't care about Shakespeare anymore. Swagger got me the part," Chris added.

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Tina Fey

"I didn't realize that the commercial was set at a McDonald's drive-thru, so you had to go up, like, [from the side]," Fey explained during a March 2014 clip from The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. "And I have this big 'ol scar on my face, which I didn't realize was going to be featured prominently in my audition for McDonald's. ... So basically, after a two-and-a-half-hour wait, I got in there and was like ... 'Hi, I'll have a Big Mac and my scar will have an orange soda.' And then I just left, because they weren't going to give me that."

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Lucy Hale

“That audition was so uncomfortable!" the Pretty Little Liars alum told Cosmopolitan in August 2014 of auditioning for Fifty Shades of Grey. "It’s exactly what you thought it would be: a big monologue but very, very sexual. There were some things that I was so embarrassed to be reading out loud, but it’s one of those things where you have to commit wholeheartedly or you’re going to make a fool of yourself.”

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Jennifer Garner

The actress revealed that it was her own audition rules that led to her worst experience.

The Love, Simon star explained on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in October 2014 that she preferred to stick to one outfit for a specific role that she was auditioning for. After making it to the fourth round in the casting process, Garner found out that it was her choice in clothes that made her stand out – but not in the best way.

"'We do want to bring Jennifer back, but does she have any other clothes?'" she recalled the casting agent asking her team.

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Jake Gyllenhaal

“I remember there [were] a lot of stage directions, so there were no lines,” Gyllenhaal explained to Jimmy Fallon in 2016. “We didn’t have any lines to say, really. It was just, like, finding the ring, you are supposed to open the thing, and there’s a ring there. … I remember I didn’t really do it, because I didn’t understand it because there were no lines. So, I walked up, opened it up, and was like, ‘Is that good?'”

The Lord of the Rings director expressed that the audition wasn't good and even told the actor to "fire" his agents.

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Eddie Redmayne

The Fantastic Beasts actor had a less than productive audition for Kylo Ren in 2015’s Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens.

"They gave me, like, a Star Trek scene – or, like, something from Pride and Prejudice. It was one of those films. With films that top secret, they don’t give you the actual lines," Redmayne told Uproxx in November 2016. "So they give you a scene from Pride and Prejudice, but then they tell you you’re auditioning for the baddie. If you’re me, you then put some ridiculous voice on."

The Academy Award winner called the moment "hilarious," but his approach wasn't what worked for the casting agents.

"And after, like, 10 shots [Nina Gold] is like, 'You got anything else?' I was like, 'No,'" he shared.

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Ryan Reynolds

"I was never a great auditioner. But I had one where I had to sing, and I'm a nervous singer," he told Taraji P. Henson during a Variety Studios: Actors on Actors interview in November 2016. "I'm one of those people that … you know when you're in the shower, and you're like, 'This is pretty good?' But once I get out into the real world, it's just like my voice turns into a hammer that hits everybody in the face.”

He continued, "So I did an audition where I had to sing, and it was pretty bad. It's one of those auditions that was so bad that I look back and I think, 'What if that tape surfaces at some point? That'll be the death of me.' Yeah. That was pretty awful."

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Tom Holland

The Spider-Man: Homecoming actor revealed that his take on Finn from 2015’s Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens was not one that he remembers fondly. Holland told Backstage in February 2021 that he’s had “quite a few” bad auditions over the years. “I’ve read the wrong lines at the wrong audition before,” he said.

His reading for the part of Finn — which eventually went to John Boyega — stands out as one of worst.

“I remember my audition for Star Wars, I was, like, four or five auditions in,” the British actor told the outlet. “I remember doing this scene with this lady, bless her, and she was just a drone.”

The audition called for the Cherry star to interact with a robot character. “I was doing all of this, like, ‘We gotta get back to the ship!’ And she was going, ‘Bleep, bloop bloop, bleep bloop,’” he said. “I just couldn’t stop laughing. I found it so funny.”

Holland admitted that he “felt really bad, because she was trying really hard to be a convincing android or drone or whatever they’re called,” but he couldn’t contain his laughter. He added: “Yeah, I obviously didn’t get the part. That wasn’t my best moment.”

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Anthony Anderson

"My worst audition experience was when I dressed up as a woman. I thought I [did] great. The director and producers thought otherwise," the comedian told Us Weekly in February 2021.

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Matt LeBlanc

After a night of drinking, the Friends star found himself with an obvious face injury that he couldn't hide during his audition for Joey Tribbiani.

"'What happened to your face?'" the actor recalled being asked at the audition during the sitcom's HBOMax reunion in May 2021 . "And I told the truth and got the job."

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Elizabeth Olsen

“Yes, I auditioned for Game of Thrones. I auditioned for, like, the assistant to the casting director in a small room in New York with just a camera on me and them reading the script,” Olsen said on The Hollywood Reporter’s “Awards Chatter” podcast in June 2021, revealing she was reading for the part of the Mother of Dragons Khaleesi, which ultimately went to Emilia Clarke. “I was doing the Khaleesi speech when she comes out of the fire. It was awful. I didn’t get a callback.”

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Drew Tarver

“This maybe says more about my acting ability than I’d like to, but I went to quite a few commercial auditions where the role is ‘man enjoying a party,'” the Other Two star told Page Six in August 2021. “Trying to dip a chip and being like, ‘This is so fun!’ in a room that’s painted all blue and has carpet everywhere and there’s somebody who’s tired of filming actors all day being like, ‘Great, good, OK, yes, the party’s fun, you’re having fun,’ and you’re just in a room by yourself being like, ‘Man, I love this guacamole!'” 

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Lizzo

"I'm not good at auditioning. I'm like, 'Put me in the scene. Don't ask me to audition. Just write it for me,'" the musician told Variety in February 2022 after auditioning for Ursula in the live-action version of The Little Mermaid. “But, you know, I’m fine as hell. That has nothing to do with Ursula, but I was down to make Ursula a THOT, shaking ass.”

The “Truth Hurts” singer recalled later running into Melissa McCarthy, who got the part of the Disney villain, while at an Adele concert. “She was like, ‘Hi, I’m Melissa.’ And I was like, ‘Hi, I’m Melissa. And I also auditioned for Ursula.’ And she was like, ‘Well, why the hell did I get the part?,’ which is a classic Melissa McCarthy thing to say,” Lizzo remembered. “And then I was like, ‘Girl, because my audition was terrible.’ And I say that as Tyler Perry walks by. And I was like, ‘[I] ruined my chances there.’”

The Michigan native noted that her audition for the part “wasn’t terrible,” hinting that it was her comedy that cost her the role. “Sometimes I like to make jokes. My audition was good. You can ask Disney. I don’t want to talk too much about it,” she added. “The singing was great. I’ll just say that.”