Have you ever lied in your resume to get that ideal job? Surely a lot of you must have added skills in your profile to get the recruiters’ attention. You gotta’ sell what want to see. No matter how different Hollywood and the lives of actors sound from this side of the fence, some things remain the same. There are many actors, who are quite successful today by the way, who fabricated skills and lied in the auditions in order to get their big breaks. Find out the 10 actors who lied to land breakthrough roles in movies and series.
Idris Elba
Why does a talented man like Idris Elba even need to lie? His performance and personality sell themselves. But the British actor’s agent persuaded him to pretend to be American at the auditions of “The Wire” since the director only wanted to go with Americans. However, after making it through four rounds, Elba told the truth and got selected anyway. After all, look at his acting chops.
Mads Mikkelson
The gem-like actor Mads Mikkelson probably doesn’t need to lie during his auditions anymore. After watching his flawless work in “Hannibal”, any director and producer would cast him with closed eyes. But about six years before the TV show when Mikkelson was auditioning for the Bond film “Casino Royale”, he lied about being a huge Bond fan. But in reality, Mikkelson had never even watched a single Bond movie, let alone being a fan of it. The actor had to finally go through a Bond marathon after he was bombarded with questions from the press during the tour.
Jodie Comer
Jodie Comer knew that playing the cunning assassin in “Killing Eve” demanded many skills such as combat, fitness, and multilingual. However, it was too late by the time she realized what she needed. There was only one option- to add them anyway and see what happens. So, she lied to casting directors about knowing different languages and cracked the role in one of the most popular shows on Prime Video.
Jason Momoa
Before getting his big break in “Game of Thrones” and “Aquaman”, Jason Momoa had fought through his own share of struggles for many years. The casting directors were going to reject Jason at the auditions of “Baywatch: Hawaii” for not having an impressive resume. But then the young and unknown actor immediately came up with a lie to sell himself and said that he was a big model in Hawaii and worked for fashion brands such as Gucci, Louis Vuitton, etc.
Gillian Anderson
Everyone knows how Mila Kunis lied about being older for her role in “That ‘70s Show” while she was merely a teenager. Similarly, Gillian Anderson pretended to be older on the auditions of “The X-Files”. She was 24 years old at that time but told the casting directors that she was 27. The directors were looking for someone more mature to play the role of an FBO agent in the SciFi show. Not only did the lie work out in her favor, but Gillian became the face of the show.
Meghan Markle
Before becoming an international name with “Suits” and as the “Duchess of Sussex”, Meghan Markle had her own twisted journey to get picked up by the casting directors. During one of her auditions for a show when she was asked if she had a SAG Card, Meghan nodded silently. She lied that she was part of the actors’ guild but the lie didn’t last long. The directors cut ties with her after discovering her lie as they could have been in serious trouble for working with a non-member.
Ben Hardy
It’s better to get a crash course on the lies you build during the auditions. That’s what Ben Hardy did when he told the director that he could play drums. Bryan Singer was strict about casting someone in “Bohemian Rhapsody” who knew how to play drums. So, Ben nodded about the skill and reportedly practiced his drum sessions all day before the filming began.
Matt Damon
Remember how Joey Tribbiani had a long list of lies on his resume on “Friends”? Turns out that he was not the only one to lie about knowing Italian or horse-riding. One of the most demanded A-List actors in Hollywood, Matt Damon also fabricated a few extra skills. While applying for a local TV show in Boston, Matt told the directors that he could ice skate. Unfortunately, the lie slipped away when Matt fell and wounded himself while filming. On top of that, the productions had to bear all the costs to treat his injuries.
Jada Pinkett Smith
When Jada Smith was cast for the role of Niobe in “The Matrix Reloaded”, the directors needed her in the month of November as that’s when the shooting was supposed to begin. But there was one obstacle in this whole scenario. Jada was pregnant during that time and didn’t want to give up the opportunity to appear in the movie. So, she told the studio that her due date was in October but in truth, she was due in the mid-week of November. Luckily, Jada got her date early and welcomed the baby on 31st October.
Jameela Jamil
The popular British actress from “The Good Place”, radio presenter, model, and activist, Jameela had zero experience in acting. But she made sure not to let that ruin her auditions and improvised everything on the spot. She told everyone that she had been acting and performing since her school days and also went on to perform comedy at a theatre in London.
