‘Shark Tank’ Star Mark Cuban Lost This Movie Role to Phillip Seymour Hoffman

Mark Cuban of 'Shark Tank' tried out his acting chops and almost got a part in a popular action flick.

by Melissa Mitas

Published on October 5, 2020

2 min read

Mark Cuban takes to the stage

After establishing himself as a billionaire business mogul, Cuban tried his hand at acting. With a bit of an ulterior motive other than a love of theater, the Dallas Mavericks owner gave the performing arts a shot.

“It was never a dream,” the Shark Tank star told Men’s Health in 2014. “It started out as a way to meet girls in LA. I figured, why not? But as it turned out, it was something I really liked to do then and now.”

Cuban enjoyed the segue to a craft far from his white-collar world of being an industry titan.

“It is the opposite of business,” Cuban commented. “You have to let completely go and just be in the moment. So it was a cool challenge for me. I took acting classes with Aaron Speiser. There were lots of soap [opera] actors, the whole Wayans family was in our class.”

‘Shark Tank’ star in ‘Twister’?

The 1996 blockbuster Twister starred Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt as two storm chasers trying to create an alert system for tornadoes. Cuban revealed he tried out for a part as one of the tornado enthusiasts on Hunt’s team.

“I auditioned for the movie Twister and got a callback,” he said, according to CNBC. The role of the boisterous thrill-seeker Dusty ultimately went to the late Philip Seymour Hoffman, though Cuban joked that the actor was “mis-cast.” “I was right for the role,” the tech guru remarked.

Cuban wasn’t letting the rejection keep him down, where he soon co-founded his company Broadcast.com. The Shark Tank investor went on to make another $5.7 billion when the organization was acquired by Yahoo! in 2000.

Mark Cuban lands recurring cameo on ‘Entourage’

Cuban didn’t limit himself to big-budget films when he tried out for roles. The NBA team owner was open to commercial work, even when costume requirements were a bit over the top.

“I had a Taco Bell audition where I had to wear a huge sombrero and walk around like an idiot,” he told Men’s Health. “I did small independent stuff that I won’t name. But it led to all my breakthrough moments on Entourage.”

The Shark Tank panelist first appeared in Entourage in 2011. With several cameos in the seventh and eight seasons of the HBO series, Cuban joined the cast in the film version in 2015. Fellow billionaire Warren Buffet also had a walk-on in the movie.