Why Did Johnny Depp Refuse A Role In Face/Off? (Photo Credit – Wikipedia)

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Back in the wild ride that was ’90s Hollywood, a truly bizarre casting twist almost changed the face of one of the biggest action movies of the decade. Turns out, Johnny Depp was close to starring in Face/Off, the 1997 guns-blazing thriller that ended up pairing Nicolas Cage and John Travolta. But Depp, being Depp, said “no thanks” to the role. The reason? He thought the film was about hockey.

Screenwriter Michael Colleary spilled the beans on this almost-too-weird-to-be-true moment. “After finally reading the script, however, Depp refused to take part. Having read the title, he thought the film would be about hockey. He was disappointed when he discovered that it was not about hockey. He was out,” Colleary said, according to Looper.

Depp was originally being considered to play FBI agent Sean Archer, the role that eventually went to Travolta. Nicolas Cage was already locked in as the over-the-top villain Castor Troy, and Paramount was gunning for a Depp-Cage combo. But the minute Depp realized there were no skates or sticks involved, he backed out.

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