Jennifer Lawrence has never been shy about looking back on her career with honesty, even when it means admitting regret. During a recent interview, the Oscar-winning actor shared a close call that continues to hurt: her possible role in ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’ by Quentin Tarantino. Although Sharon Tate’s role eventually was taken by Margot Robbie, Lawrence provides an eye-opening insight into how timing, perception, and internet culture can influence even the largest of careers.
Lawrence was still one of the most recognizable Hollywood stars at the time. But she was going through a tricky time in her career. The period between her Oscar victories and her more recent revival was full of projects that did not always take off. It was with that in mind that the concept of entering Tarantino’s world was both a chance and a threat.
How Internet Perception Helped Shape One Of Jennifer Lawrence’s Biggest What-Ifs
In an interview on Happy Sad Confused, Lawrence admitted that Tarantino had been interested in casting her long before ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’. Actually, she has confessed that she rejected a part in ‘The Hateful Eight’, a movie that she now openly regrets.
When the discussion shifted to Sharon Tate, Lawrence said that she might have been in the mix. However, something she could not control altered the situation.
Lawrence suggests that a wave of online commentary about whether she was pretty enough to play Tate might have contributed to the perception of her casting. “Tarantino did want her for the role, and then everybody was like, ‘She’s not pretty enough to play Sharon Tate.” I’m pretty sure it is true. Or it’s that thing where I’ve been telling this story this way for so long that I believe it. No, but I’m pretty sure that happened. Or he just never was considering me for the part, and the internet went out of their way to call me ugly,” she joked.
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She confesses that she may be misremembering the formality of the offer, but the emotional effect was real. That scene is addressed to a larger fact of contemporary Hollywood.
The decisions of casting are no longer made in a vacuum. The commentary on social media, the response of fans, and online stories can all influence the future of studios and filmmakers. For Lawrence, it’s hard not to imagine how frustrating it must have been to feel sidelined by an internet debate rather than a creative one.
‘Once Upon A Time In Hollywood’ Cemented Margot Robbie As A Hollywood Sensation
‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’ turned out to be a breakthrough for Margot Robbie. While she had already impressed critics with ‘I’, ‘Tonya’, Tarantino’s film elevated her to a new level of global recognition.
The success of the movie, with several Oscar nominations and a win by Brad Pitt, cemented Robbie as a Hollywood star. To Lawrence, it was a more complex time. She was coming out of a streak of movies that were not as popular with audiences or critics.
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Her career momentum would take time and distance to be re-established. In hindsight, missing out on a Tarantino project during that stretch feels like a turning point that never quite happened. However, it is not just the story of missed chances.
Lawrence is now squarely back in the limelight, winning award recognition once more, and is about to come back as Katniss Everdeen, one of her biggest roles. Her creative future is bright with new collaborations in the future, such as a project with Martin Scorsese.
