Will Smith reveals he turned down the lead role in Christopher Nolan’s Inception because he “didn’t understand the plot.” The part eventually went to Leonardo DiCaprio. Smith also reflects on passing up The Matrix and Django Unchained, calling them some of his biggest career regrets.
In a surprising revelation that has sent ripples through Hollywood and cinephile communities, actor Will Smith recently shared that he turned down the lead role in Christopher Nolan’s mind-bending 2010 blockbuster Inception—simply because he “didn’t understand the plot.”
Smith made the confession during an interview with radio station Kiss Xtra, as reported by HuffPost and Variety. In the candid moment, Smith admitted he had never spoken publicly about passing on the iconic film until now.
“I don’t think I’ve ever said it publicly but I am going to say it because we are opening up to one another,” Smith said. “Chris Nolan brought me Inception first and I didn’t get it. I’ve never said that out loud. Now that I think about it, it’s those movies that go into those alternate realities… they don’t pitch well. But I am hurt by those, too.”
Inception, which ultimately starred Leonardo DiCaprio, was a critical and commercial success. The cerebral sci-fi thriller grossed over $839 million worldwide and has since become one of Nolan’s most beloved works, celebrated for its complex narrative structure and groundbreaking visual effects.
According to inside sources at the time, Brad Pitt was originally Nolan’s top choice for the role of Dom Cobb. However, Pitt did not move forward with the project. Smith was next in line, but his confusion about the film’s concept led him to pass on it. Leonardo DiCaprio then accepted the role, delivering one of the most memorable performances of his career.
While Smith acknowledged that rejecting Inception was a missed opportunity, he noted it wasn’t as painful as another high-profile role he declined: Neo in The Matrix. That role famously went to Keanu Reeves, launching what would become one of the most iconic science fiction franchises of all time.
“It hurts too bad to talk about,” Smith said about passing on The Matrix.
In 2019, Smith posted a YouTube video offering more context on why he turned down The Matrix. He explained that the pitch from the Wachowski siblings, who were relatively unknown at the time, focused more on their innovative directing vision than the story itself. Smith recalled the pitch as being vague and abstract.
“We’re thinking like… imagine you’re in a fight. You, like, jump. Imagine if you could stop jumping in the middle of the jump. But then, people could see around you 360 degrees while you stop jumping. We’re going to invent these cameras and then people can see the whole jump when you stop in the middle of the jump,” he remembered.
Smith admitted that the technical concept of “bullet time” was hard to grasp in a pitch format, and the lack of a clearer narrative kept him from signing on.
And The Matrix wasn’t the only major opportunity he walked away from. Smith was also considered for the lead in Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained, a role that ultimately went to Jamie Foxx. That film, like Inception and The Matrix, became both a critical and commercial hit.
In hindsight, these decisions reflect the challenging nature of Hollywood’s high-stakes casting process. For Smith, a superstar with an extensive filmography and multiple box-office hits, the revelations are a sobering reminder that even the biggest stars sometimes miss what turn out to be historic opportunities.
| Also Read: ‘True Detective’ duo reunites: McConaughey to play Mike Hammer |
Despite the regrets, Smith’s openness adds to his relatability and underscores a truth about the industry: storytelling—especially unconventional, high-concept storytelling—can be difficult to translate from script to screen, and even harder to convey in a pitch room.
While he may have missed out on a few genre-defining roles, Smith remains one of Hollywood’s most bankable and versatile actors. And if anything, these missed opportunities only humanize the megastar further in the eyes of his fans.
