10 Stars Who Were Rejected Before Making It Big
Not everyone makes it in showbiz and some people who did... nearly didn't. From Scarlett Johansson to Hugh Jackman, check out 10 stars who were rejected again and again before finally hitting the big time.
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1. Scarlett Johansson
At the tender age of 11, Scarlett Johansson missed out on a part in 'Jumanji' to Kirsten Dunst, but she only had to wait 3 years for her starring role in 'The Horse Whisperer'. Since then the Golden Globe nominated actress has wowed Hollywood with films such as 'Lost In Translation', 'Her' and 'The Avengers'.
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2. Anna Wintour
As the Editor of American Vogue, Anna Wintour is one of the biggest names in fashion but while working at Harper's Bazaar as Junior Fashion Editor, she was fired after 9 months because her shoots were considered too edgy. She's recently said: "I recommend that you all get fired. It's a great learning experience." Today she continues to lead the fashion industry and in 2008 was awarded an OBE for her services to both British journalism and British fashion in the United States.
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3. Jennifer Aniston
In the late '80s Jennifer Aniston was struggling to find her big break. She'd starred in a few shows but none of them had taken off and she asked NBC's Warren Littlefield, 'Is it ever going to happen?' He replied: "We believe in you. I love you. I so believe in your talent, I'm sure it will." A few months later they handed her the 'Friends' script. After 10 amazing seasons as Rachel Green, Jennifer Aniston went into movies and this year was Golden Globe nominated for her performance in 'Cake'.
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4. Hugh Jackman
Hugh Jackman might be one of the biggest stars in Hollywood and the face of iconic 'X-Men' superhero Wolverine, but back when he was just another struggling actor, he couldn't keep a job at a 7-11 convenience store. The Oscar nominated actor said: "I got fired after six weeks because the [boss] said I talked too much to the customers." Today he has starred in big movies such as 'Les Misérables', as well as becoming a Broadway star.
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5. Harrison Ford
When he first started acting film executives told Harrison Ford he didn't have what it took to be a star, but he proved them wrong and has since starred in numerous successful movies over the years, including 'Indiana Jones', 'Blade Runner' and 'Air Force One'. He's now set to reprise his most famous role as Han Solo in the new 'Star Wars' film at the age of 72.
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6. Steve Jobs
It doesn't get much worse than getting fired from your own company but Steve Jobs didn't let it get to him, and instead threw himself into his work and eventually returned to the company as CEO in 1997, leading Apple to its greatest successes. He recently said: "I didn't see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me."
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7. J. K. Rowling
J. K. Rowling's 'Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone' was famously rejected again and again before becoming a best seller and the author was even fired from her job at the London office of Amnesty International because she would write stories on her computer instead of working. She's now worth millions and was only bumped off Forbes billionaires list in 2012 because of the millions she gave to charity.
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8. Steven Spielberg
Amazingly Steven Spielberg was rejected from the University of Southern California School of Theatre, Film and Television 3 times. He did get accepted by another school but dropped out to pursue directing. He has to date won 3 Oscars, 7 Golden Globes and 11 Emmys, so it looks like it paid off.
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9. Oprah Winfrey
Before she became the star of daytime TV, Oprah Winfrey was fired from her job as an evening news reporter at Baltimore's WJZ-TV because she was "unfit for television news" and couldn’t sever her emotions from her stories. She was given a daytime TV show as a consolation and found her true calling. Since then the household name has won various awards and accolades for her work, including an Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998.
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10. Madonna
Madonna may be the Queen of pop now but before anyone knew her name, she had dropped out of college and couldn't even last one day working at Dunkin’ Donuts. Trying to make it as a singer in New York, one record company rejected her saying the thing "missing from this project is the material". With a career spanning decades, the singer has won a total of 266 awards and is still making music today.
