James McAvoy has disclosed that he stepped into a role originally intended for Joaquin Phoenix, which turned out to be one of his most remarkable performances.
From his early days in the UK’s gritty Shameless TV series to his iconic portrayal of Professor X in X Men: First Class, the Scottish actor has been a prominent figure in cinema for many years.
Yet, you might recognize him most for his riveting performance as a man with multiple personalities in a psychological thriller.
This role almost went to Phoenix, who exited the project just ‘two weeks’ before filming commenced.
McAvoy played Kevin Wendell Crumb, a character with dissociative identity disorder.
Kevin’s condition manifested as over twenty distinct personalities that eventually overshadowed him, as these personalities conspired to control his life and plot against the world.
The film received significant acclaim for its portrayal and depth.
Directed by M. Night Shyamalan, the 2016 movie Split is undoubtedly memorable.
During an interview with Josh Horowitz on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, McAvoy shared that Phoenix had ‘abandoned’ the project just before filming was about to begin.
He said: “He’s an amazing actor. I think he’d give a very different performance to the one I did. Sometimes, coming in last minute is the best way.
“I think he ditched it like two weeks before they started shooting. It was really last minute. The script was well put together, so a lot of it was pretty clear what I actually wanted to do straight away.
“There were a couple of characters it took a little bit longer to find. Patricia came real quick, Dennis came real quick, Hedwig took a little while.”
McAvoy further elaborated: “I hadn’t even found some of the characters and then it just came on really quick, and then Night actually said to me, ‘I want you to give Hedwig a speech impediment,’ and I was like, ‘What, just at the last minute? You want me to just go for it?’ and he was like, ‘Yeah, we need to try something.’ So, we did it in the read-through and after one scene of doing it, were like, ‘Done!’”
McAvoy’s portrayal was evidently a perfect fit as Split became the most well-received film directed by Shyamalan since Signs in 2002.
The film also played a crucial role in revitalizing the narratives of Glass and Unbreakable.
Recently, reports surfaced that Phoenix had also exited a Todd Haynes-directed project at the eleventh hour.
During a press conference for Joker 2 at the Venice Film Festival, Phoenix reportedly said: “It would just be sharing my opinion and the other creatives aren’t here to share their piece.
“It doesn’t feel like that would be right. I don’t think that would be helpful so I just don’t think I will. Thank you.”