Stranger Things actor David Harbour is now an A-list actor after starring in the biggest production in his acting career playing Chief Jim Hopper and soon to be the next Hellboy in the upcoming remake. But as with any actor, the road to a success acting career is filled with difficult situations.
Harbour gave an interview to TheWrap and revealed he auditioned to play the Blob in a Wolverine movie a few years ago. Given how there’s only one Wolverine movie featuring Blob, it’s easy to assume it was X-Men Origins Wolverine. According to him, one of the casting directors of the film told him he would be perfect for a role in the movie.
“I auditioned for one of the ‘Wolverine’ movies and I bumped into one of the casting directors on the lot […] she was like — I’m never in town, I’m always in New York — ‘Oh my god, David Harbour, you’re in town! I have the perfect role for you.’ I was like, ‘Great, I need to work, what do you got?’ She’s like ‘THE BLOB!’”
The casting director explained to him, and clarified that her thinking of him for the part was not because of his weight but because of his size.
“‘The Blob?’ She was like, ‘Yeah, it’s like an X-Men, he’s like big, fat and controls gravity’ and I was like ‘Okay, wow, that’s flattering.’ And she was like, ‘no, no, it’s not that you’re fat, it’s just that we need a big guy to wear the suit.’
Getting the casting director interested in you is quite an achieve. Unfortunately, Harbour’s chance to land the Blob role did not last long.
Once he was finished with the audition and in a good mood, Harbour approached the director and the casting people to make a joke. He lifted his shirt, squeezed his belly and said: “I got your Blob right here!”
Except, the casting team did not find it funny. Instead, it got him a meeting with the director, who told him the studios had concerns about his health after seeing his belly and were moving forward with out him.
“I just made a stupid joke and then they called me and the director, we met at like a hotel, and he was like, ‘David, look, you’re wonderful, we really think you’re just a great actor, we’re just concerned… we’re really concerned. I was like, ‘Why, what’s your concern? I’m good to go. I’m available, let’s do this!’ And they were like, ‘no, it’s just, you lifted up your shirt and we saw the… we’re just a little worried about your health.’”
Harbour was shocked.
“I was like, ‘Wait a minute, dude, pause for one second. You are telling me I’m too fat to play The Blob? That’s awesome, I have to get the f— back to New York.’ That’s my audition — so I didn’t get The Blob.”
Harbour’s comments reflect those similar to actor Sam Claflin made earlier this week about his experiences with body-shaming during auditions. In fact, Chris Pratt also recounted times he ad been told by casting directors and producers that he was too fat for certain roles.
