Will Smith Explains His Decision to Pass on Nolan’s ‘Inception’

Hollywood legend Will Smith recently caught off guard fans with a revealing confession—he turned down the starring role in Christopher Nolan's award-winning film Inception because he just couldn't get his head around the story.

Speaking in an interview with UK radio station Kiss Xtra (as documented by HuffPost and Variety), Smith revealed that the intricate plot didn't quite click for him, resulting in him exiting what went on to become one of the decade's most iconic movies.

"I don't think I've ever said it out loud but I'm going to say it because we are opening up to each other," Smith admitted. "Chris Nolan introduced me to Inception initially and I did not understand it. I've never said that in public. Now that I reflect upon it, it's those films that step into those other worlds… they don't sell well. But I am wounded by those too."

Though Inception would eventually become a huge hit—grossing a total of $839 million—Smith lost out on topping the intellectual action blockbuster. The part went to Leonardo DiCaprio, who made it one of the most box-office and widely acclaimed performances of his career.

As reported by industry reports, the then-industry insiders claimed that initially, Brad Pitt was Nolan's top choice for the role, although he turned him down. Smith was the next after him, revealing later that he had turned it down since he was not sure about the story.

Nevertheless, Smith recognizes that losing out on Inception wasn't quite so bad as passing on another career-defining role: Neo in The Matrix. That role eventually fell to Keanu Reeves, solidifying his status in sci-fi lore.

And it hurts. It hurts too bad to talk about," Smith told the same interviewer, referencing The Matrix rejection.

Smith had already spoken more about this choice in a YouTube video in 2019, stating that the Wachowski siblings' pitch didn't appeal to him then. He felt it was more centered on how they wanted to film it than on what the story itself was.

We're thinking like. suppose you're in a battle. You, like, jump. Suppose you could pause jumping in the middle of the jump. But then people could see on both sides of you 360 degrees while you pause jumping. We're going to create these cameras and then people can see the entire jump when you pause in the middle of the jump," he remembered them saying.

Smith also rejected the starring role in Django Unchained, which was ultimately played by Jamie Foxx. Tarantino had originally conceived of Smith playing the role, but the role went to Foxx, which helped make the film a box office and awards hit.