Why Josh Gad Was Rejected By James Cameron's Avatar Franchise

In James Cameron's 2009 ultra-hit "Avatar," Joel David Moore plays Dr. Norm Spellman, an anthropologist who travels to the distant moon of Pandora to study its indigenous residents, the Na'vi, as well as the planet's varied flora and fauna. Dr. Spellman is gregarious and possesses a light sense of humor, making him a good friend to his fellow humans but a bad match for the more stern Na'vi locals. He, like several of the human characters in "Avatar," has his consciousness shunted into the body of a Na'vi/human clone so that he can breathe the air and traverse the terrain more comfortably. Moore handles the role well, and, despite limited screen time, infuses Dr. Spellman with a great deal of affable humanity.

It seems that Cameron auditioned at least one other notable comedian for the role, as Josh Gad was apparently a finalist to play Dr. Spellaman. In 2009, Gad hadn't yet broken through to mainstream audiences. At the time, he was best known for a stint on "The Daily Show," a regular role in the Broadway show "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," and the short-lived 2007 Fox sitcom "Back to You." That changed when Gad took the world by storm in 2011 with his performance in the Broadway musical smash "The Book of Mormon," followed by his role as the popular snowman sidekick Olaf in Disney's animated blockbuster "Frozen" two years later.

While he was still on the rise, though, Gad auditioned for Dr. Spellman and even got so far in the audition process that Cameron made a CGI Na'vi avatar of him. Sadly, as Gad recounted in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, he was rejected for the role when his Na'vi self came back from the lab. It seems that his face and body weren't a good match for Cameron's alien designs.

Making "Avatar" movies, as most readers might know, is a multi-year process. Cameron supposedly began writing down ideas for "Avatar" as early as 1994, back when the director was working on his action/comedy "True Lies." He was inspired (obviously) by the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs (specifically, the author's "John Carter" stories) and H. Rider Haggard, and wanted to make his own anti-colonialist sci-fi adventure story. Production in earnest began in 2005, with casting taking place in 2006 and 2007.

It seems that part of the screen testing processed involved the actors being scanned into Cameron's computers and re-created as Na'vi. With "Avatar" being a mostly animated film, it was vital that Cameron be able to mutate his human actors into lanky, nine-foot-tall, blue-skinned alien creatures with large eyes, catlike noses, and tails. Gad, it seems, was funny enough to be considered for the part of Dr. Norm Spillman, but he wasn't a good match with a Na'vi body. Gad described his audition as follows:

"I put myself on tape and shortly thereafter got a call that Cameron wanted to fly me to Los Angeles for a final callback at his Lightstorm production offices. [...] [It was] a role I apparently did not get because, while James Cameron was said to be thrilled with my audition, when I was turned into a digital Avatar I supposedly looked like a tall, overweight Smurf."

Lightstorm is, of course, Cameron's production company. 

It remains a sad truth of most Hollywood productions that actors are typically cast because of the way they look, not by talent alone. Gad might have played his human character well, but Cameron, wanting his aliens to look a very specific appearance, seemingly cast actors based on their facial structures. 

No matter. Gad became a superstar without "Avatar," and still became involved with some of the highest-grossing movies of all time. He won.