Of all the could haves and would haves of casting history, Quentin Tarantino’s Grindhouse picture Death Proof has one of the most fascinating lists of potential leads: Sylvester Stallone, Willem Dafoe, John Travolta, Mickey Rourke, and Kal Penn (!!) among many other notable stars were all eyed for the killer role of Stuntman Mike before Kurt Russell snatched the gig. While seeing Dafoe in a Tarantino flick or seeing Kal Penn have a turn as a psychotic stuntman-turned-serial-killer would have each been equally fascinating, all that’s possibly left now is mere speculation.

Death Proof works because how loyally it leans into its campy aesthetic and its absurd premise. It’s Tarantino at his most unabashed, lacking the cinematic polish that he layers onto his larger budget, more “serious” flicks. At the end of the day, QT is a devoted student of sleazy grindhouse cinema, a fact that shines through the very inception of Death Proof and becomes wholly apparent throughout the film. More importantly, though, is how much of Death Proof’s power is due to Russell’s chilling performance.
COLLIDER VIDEO OF THE DAYSCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT

Quentin Tarantino Films Have Frequently Changed Their Rumored Cast List

Image via Dimension Films

Of course, changes in casts or rumored roles going to a different actor happens all the time, sometimes even famously. Tom Selleck almost played Indiana Jones. Chris Farley nearly voiced Shrek (he recorded the majority of his lines but passed away before the film’s completion). Jack Nicholson turned down the role of Michael Corleone. Johnny Depp was originally scouted to play Ferris Bueller. Say what you will about Tarantino as an artist, but the man tends to know what he wants. He’s got a pretty damned good feel for actors and their potential, so when he writes a role, you could expect him to have a few names in mind—though these names often don’t pull through.

In the early days of Inglorious Basterds, the proposed cast list teased a damned impressive roster of talent, most famously with Adam Sandler being intended for the role of Donny “Bear Jew” Donnowitz. In other Basterds couldabeens, DiCaprio was once considered for the role of Hans Landa, as was Arnold Schwarzenegger. But the cinematic gods ultimately intervened and gifted us with an absolutely magnetic performance by Christoph Waltz—without which we never would have had Waltz’s bits in Spectre or Django Unchained.

And speaking of Django Unchained, Tarantino’s revisionist spaghetti western gives us another prime example of how second-string choices often prove to be the ideal choice for a role. With Will Smith rejecting the role of Django due to a concern that he “wasn’t the main character” (isn’t his name in the goddamn title, though?), Jamie Foxx, an inarguably better choice for the character, got the part. Sometimes it just works out for the better.

RELATED: What Happened to Lee in ‘Death Proof’? Mary Elizabeth Winstead Weighs In

Stallone, Dafoe, Rourke (And More!), Would Have Drastically Changed ‘Death Proof’

Looking at the potential stars of Death Proof, it’s hard to imagine any of the desired actors turning in a bad performance, even if each would have transformed Stuntman Mike into a drastically different character. Stallone and Mickey Rourke both possess the raw physique to make Mike an imposing force in the film, and each have the cheekily meta-ness of having been action-heavy movie icons back in the day.

In a way, Mickey Rourke would have made a nearly perfect Stuntman Mike, considering he looks like the type of guy that can get the shit kicked out of him and stay standing. Years of boxing has famously left Rourke with significant facial damage, giving him the appearance of somebody who’s been through some rough shit, which would be a perfect physique for an ex-stuntman. Similarly, Rourke can effortlessly ooze grit and menace. Compared to Russell, Rourke would have probably been better at being more outwardly horrifying. Even without Death Proof, though, Rourke went on a brilliant comeback streak with Sin City, Iron Man 2, and the Oscar-winning The Wrestler. Working with a filmmaker with as immediate cultural appeal as Tarantino could’ve been another notch in his belt, but it wasn’t meant to be.

Meanwhile, Stallone was interested, but he had preexisting obligations towards shooting Rocky Balboa and Rambo. Sly built his entire career off of playing lovable unlikely heroes, so to see him as a psychotic villain (ahem, Toymaker in Spy Kids 3D, anyone?) would have assuredly been a welcome shift. Stallone is a big enough name to draw in a crowd, and the pulpiness of Death Proof would align nicely with the way that many A-list actors fall into B-movie roles (ironically, of course, considering that Tarantino is one of the most instantly recognizable names in mainstream Hollywood). In comparison to the Mike that we know, Stallone might have brought a sharper edge.

Kal Penn seems like the oddest choice on the list for two reasons: first, for better or worse, Penn doesn’t have the same griminess that the other actors can possess with ease. Second, he’s so damn young. For me, Stuntman Mike works best as an aging, greasy oldtimer whose flirting seems simultaneously charming and creepy. Don’t get me wrong, Penn’s proven himself to be a good actor, and he’s got a sort of laid back charm that could have given Mike some sort of comedy. Unlike the other contenders for the role, who each have a couple of decades on him, Penn would’ve been out of place as Mike, a role that demands no small amount of sleaze. Still, after seeing and loving (!!!) Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle, Tarantino had the thought to put Penn in his next flick, which ended up being Death Proof. Penn’s obligation to Epic Movie got in the way though, and so he definitely got the (much, much) shorter end of the stick.

Of all the potential Mikes, my money would have been on Willem Dafoe, who proved himself to be equally capable of being evil (Spider-Man) and psychotic (The Lighthouse). Dafoe rarely if ever turns out a bad performance, and his career seems to be a nonstop train that hurdles forward without losing steam. The fact that he’s set to appear in eight different film during 2023 proves that he’s not only much more than a capable actor but also a widely appealing performer. Nevertheless a Dafoe/Tarantino collaboration can only appear, for now, in a dream.

Kurt Russell Ultimately Made the Ideal Choice For the Villain in ‘Death Proof’

Image via Dimension Films

With Tarantino being a cinephile and a reviver of lost careers, it’s no surprise that the pool of talent from which he pulls his casts is vast and diverse. A champion for cinema of all shades, the writer/director is known for digging in and pulling up some once big names whose careers have fizzled out to near obscurity. He revived John Travolta’s career with Pulp Fiction, he gave 70’s star Pam Grier a fresh starring role in Jackie Brown, and he put Kung Fu star David Carradine at the center of his epic Kill Bill. Throwing Kurt Russell into Death Proof in a time that the man was most widely known for family-friendly movies like Miracle, Dreamer, and Sky High, though not exactly a career revival, was nevertheless a career redirection.

Russell had proved himself to be a cool-as-hell badass for decades, and in Death Proof he was able to prove that he’d lost none of the toughness at his core. As Mike, he walks with an arrogant swagger that suggests a professional with decades of experience in his craft. His STUNTMAN jacket feels perfectly placed on his broad shoulders, and as he saunters around in search of his next prey, he gives off the impression of a beast on the hunt.

But Russell can turn on the charm, too. While flirting with Rose McGowan’s character, Russell toes the line between endearing and creepy. He’s got this undeniable charisma that makes you think that maybe, just maybe, you’d consider getting in a car with him if you and your friends (who you’ve just gotten into a fight with) are too drunk to drive. And he’s also got that type of suppressed menace that makes you realize, almost immediately, that it was a terrible mistake.

When Russell as Stuntman Mike offers to drive girls home the question genuinely rises whether he’s operating out of a dad-like protectiveness or a grotesque psychosexual perversion (though, it’s a Tarnantino film, so we can rightfully presume the latter). He’s a weathered, aging man whose glory days are long past and who might as well be a fossil to the young women he prays on. But shining through his core is this type of effervescent charisma that suggests that somewhere beneath it all is a handsome, charming, desirable man who puts his life in danger for a living. Only, it’s all part of the hunt for him, a mask that he puts on before he goes out killing for the night.

Of the many Death Proofs that could have existed, no two would have ever been the same. I love Death Proof because it’s grimy, greasy, and unapologetically trashy. It’s Quentin Tarantino without any of the directorial polish that make movies like Inglourious Basterds much more reputable than their sleazy premises suggest, with him telling a genuinely interesting story indebted to decades-worth of cinematic obsession while perversely reveling in all the beastly pleasures of absurdist violence and vengeance.

One needs to look no further than Stuntman Mike’s first appearance to know that, of the many Death Proofs that could have existed, we got the best possible one. Thanks to Kurt Russell, we really did.