Jim Carrey Nearly Starred in This Christmas Classic Before ‘The Grinch’
Even according to those who worked with him, Jim Carrey is a Hollywood star like no other. The actor became a big-screen leading man with 1994 hits Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, The Mask, and Dumb and Dumber. And throughout the rest of the 1990s and into the 2000s, he continued to be a major box office draw. So it’s wild to think that he nearly added one of the best beloved modern Christmas movies to his already impressive filmography in that time.
Jim Carrey has starred as two famous Christmas characters
After the 1990s saw Carrey ascend from In Living Color breakout to a legitimate movie star, the 2000s saw him take some creative risks. In addition to classic Carrey fare like Bruce Almighty and Yes Man, he continued to dabble in dramatic work. Movies such as Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and The Number 23 saw him play completely against type. But Carrey’s 2000s were also defined by how he began and ended with iconic Christmas movies.
In 2000, Carrey starred in the live-action adaptation of Dr. Seuss’ classic children’s book How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Directed by Ron Howard, that movie went on to become the highest-grossing domestic release that year with $345 million worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo. Then in 2009, Carrey teamed with director Robert Zemeckis for his motion-capture take on A Christmas Carol, another movie that turned a tidy profit globally.
The comedy icon almost made this holiday classic long before
But years before Carrey played either of those Christmas curmudgeons, he almost turned up the holiday cheer with a very different role. According to Vulture, Carrey was attached to star in Elf back in 1993. If it had happened, the movie would have likely hit theaters right in the midst of Carrey‘s breakthrough run of the mid-1990s. As it stands, the movie got stuck in development, and the actor dropped out.
Of course, director Jon Favreau picked up Elf nearly a decade later. And the resulting movie — which stars Will Ferrell as Buddy the Elf — became a blockbuster hit in 2003. On a $33 million production budget, Elf brought in $224 million worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo. Ironically, the movie confirmed Ferrell’s own status as a comedy star capable of leading a hit movie, following popular supporting roles in Zoolander and Old School.
Jim Carrey landed a popular franchise in ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’
Carrey has created several unforgettable characters and delivered acclaimed work in comedy and drama. However, one thing that he’s largely avoided is headlining a franchise of films. The actor has only appeared in two sequels to his own movie thus far, and neither Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls nor Dumb and Dumber To is particularly beloved. But Carrey‘s willingness to embrace an ongoing film series appears to have opened up lately.
2020’s Sonic the Hedgehog gave the actor the chance to let loose as the villainous Dr. Robotnik. Fans loved seeing Carrey channel his manic 1990s run as the video game character in that live-action adaptation. And the actor seems to enjoy having the less-pressure role as the villain rather than the hero. Case in point, Carrey returns to stir up trouble in 2022’s Sonic the Hedgehog 2.
