Angelina Jolie Turned Down ‘Charlie’s Angels’ After Being Told the Film Would Make Her a Star

Angelina Jolie had the opportunity to star alongside the likes of Cameron Diaz in 2000’s Charlie’s Angels. But she rejected it for another project, even though she was told the film would boost her career.

Why Angelina Jolie rejected ‘Charlie’s Angels’

Jolie was already on the rise when Charlie’s Angels was in development. Movies like The Bone Collector and Girl,Interrupted were increasing her star-power. Winning an Oscar would only further establish Jolie as an A-Lister. She had the opportunity to add another commercial project to her name with Charlie’s Angels.

The feature already had a star-studded roster that included Lucy Liu, Drew Barrymore and Cameron Diaz. Given Jolie’s own status at the time, she might have fit right in with the cast. The studio behind Charlie’s Angels believed so too, and tried to recruit the actor.

“When [Columbia Pictures] sent me the script for Charlie’s Angels, they said there were three reasons I should do it,” Jolie once told Premiere (via 9 Types). “They said there hadn’t been really good, strong roles for women; that it would make me a big star; and that I would have a fun time doing it.”

But Jolie already felt she’d done plenty of films with strong roles.

“All my roles so far in Gia, Wallace, Playing By Heart and The Bone Collector have been strong female roles. The idea of being a big STAR has absolutely NO APPEAL to me,” she said.

She conceded that there were certain qualities the script had that she enjoyed. But she thought she was still ill-suited for the story.

“Drew Barrymore and Cameron Diaz are already celebrities and they’re going to have great fun spoofing their images with Charlie’s Angels. I’m not at that point in my career, so audiences won’t have as much fun watching me run around in high heels chasing bad guys and flipping my hair,” she said.

The movie that Angelina Jolie turned down ‘Charlie’s Angels’ for

Jolie was looking for more lighthearted work after doing Girl, Interrupted. She received a lot of recognition and praise for the film, but found it emotionally taxing.

“It was a really heavy thing,” Jolie once told CBS. “It weighed on me.”

Jolie felt Gone in 60 Seconds was the perfect flick for her.

“That was going to be my fun movie and I was going to have fun doing it with guys,” she said.

Charlie’s Angels might have also been considered a fun film. But perhaps what Jolie found more attractive about the Nicolas Cage movie was the type of character she’d be playing.

“I did this film to ground myself because [this character] is very, y’know, her hands are greasy. She’s got two jobs. She knows what she wants, simple things make her happy. And she’s very to the point, doesn’t want much. Is just looking for a fast ride and that would make her happy,” Jolie once told Associated Press.

In a 1999 interview with Film Ink, Jolie also confided that the scale of Charlie’s Angels also dissuaded her from the project.

“Plus, I don’t wanna be that exposed by being in a really big movie,” she said.

Which made more at the box office: ‘Charlie’s Angels’ or ‘Gone in 60 Seconds’?

Jolie didn’t experience any loss by missing out on Charlie’s Angels as her career continued to thrive. Likewise, Charlie’s Angels was successful without Jolie’s involvement. According to The Numbers, the action film made $259,736,090 at the box office. But Gone in 60 Seconds wasn’t too far behind with a total worldwide gross of $232,643,008.