Why James Cameron’s Sci-Fi Franchise Rejected Josh Gad

In James Cameron’s ultra-hit “Avatar” in 2009 in 2009. Joel David Moore plays Dr. Norm Spellman, an anthropologist who travels to the distant moon of Pandora to study its native inhabitants, the Na’vi, as well as the planet’s diverse flora and fauna. Dr. Spellman is gregarious and has a light sense of humor, making him a good friend to his fellow humans but a poor match for the stricter local Na’vi. He, like several of the human characters in “Avatar,” has let down his consciousness into the body of a na’vi/human clone so he can breathe the air and cross the land more comfortably. Moore handles the role well, and, despite limited screen time, imbues Dr. Spellman with a great deal of endearing humanity.

It appears that Cameron has auditioned at least one other notable comedian for the role, as Josh Gad is apparently a finalist to play Dr. Spellman. In 2009, Gad had yet to break through to mainstream audiences. At the time, he was best known for a stint on “The Daily Show,” a regular role in the Broadway show “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” and the short-lived 2007 Fox sitcom “Back to You.” That changed when Gad took the world by storm in 2011 with his performance in the smash Broadway musical “The Book of Mormon,” followed by his role as The Last Popular Snowman Sidekick in Disney’s Animated Blockbuster “Frozen” two years later.

Although it is still on the rise, nevertheless, GAD heard for Dr. Spellman and even got so far in the audition process that Cameron made a CGI Na’vi avatar of him. Unfortunately, As Gad reported in an interview with Entertainment WeeklyHe was turned down for the role when his Na’vi self came back from the lab. It seems his face and body were no match for Cameron’s alien designs.

Making “avatar” movies, as most readers might know, is a multi-year process. Cameron reportedly began writing ideas for “Avatar” as early as 1994, back when the director was working on his action/comedy “True Lies.” It was (obviously) inspired by the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs (Specifically, the author’s “John Carter” stories) and H. Rider Haggard, and wanted to make his own anti-colonial sci-fi adventure story. Production began in earnest in 2005, with casting taking place in 2006 and 2007.

It appears that part of the processed screen tests involved the actors being scanned into Cameron’s computers and recreated as Na’vi. With “Avatar” being primarily an animated film, it was imperative that Cameron be able to transform his human actors into lanky, nine-foot-tall, blue-skinned alien creatures with big eyes, catlike noses, and tails. GAD, it seems, was funny enough to be considered for the part of Dr. Norm Spillman, but it was not a good match with a Na’vi body. Gad described his audition as follows:

“I put myself on tape and soon after that I got a call that Cameron wanted to fly me to Los Angeles for a final call at his light storm production offices. (…) (it was) a role I didn’t get according to all look because, although James Cameron was said to be delighted with my audition, when I was turned into a digital avatar I, by all accounts, looked like a tall, overweight Smurf.

Lightstorm, of course, is Cameron’s production company.

It remains a sad truth of the majority of Hollywood productions that actors are usually cast because of the way they look, not through talent alone. Gad may have played his human character well, but Cameron, wanting his aliens to look a very specific appearance, apparently cast actors based on their facial structures.

It doesn’t matter. Gad became a superstar without an “avatar,” and still took part in some of the grossest films of all time. He won.