Eminem Was Offered ‘Elysium’ Role Before Matt Damon

Eminem was almost cast in Elysium, where he would have starred as Matt Damon’s character, according to the movie’s director Neill Blomkamp.

The filmmaker originally wanted Elysium to be filmed with a much lower budget, and before he even considered Eminem for the lead, he approached Ninja, a member of Die Antwoord, a South African rap ensemble.

Ninja turned him down as he didn’t believe that he could do the role justice, and the musician admits “It was a f***** up, difficult decision,” whilst he even possesses a District 9 tattoo as it is his favorite movie.

This decision lead Blomkamp to offer the role to the “Stan” singer. However, according to Wired, Eminem would only consider doing the film if it was shot in Detroit, his hometown.

Blomkamp then decided to make Elysium a huge Hollywood, action blockbuster, and so he turned to Matt Damon to take the starring role. Damon was impressed with Blomkamp’s vision for the film, stating, “About 15 minutes in, he pulled out what was essentially a homemade graphic novel [of the film]. It absolutely blew my mind… The world had already been created. It existed in [his] mind.”

Damon even compared the director’s approach to James Cameron’s work on Avatar, stating that he had worked on the project very early on and saw similarities to the pair’s work.

Elysium, which was ultimately shot on a budget of $115million, is set in a dystopian society that allows its richest citizens to live on a utopian space station, named Elysium, whilst the poorer subjects live on the ruined planet Earth, where crime is rife.

Damon stars opposite Jodie Foster, who is Elysium’s mayor, and his character sets out on the dangerous mission to breach Elysium and bring down its anti-immigration laws. Elysium will be released next month.

Do you think Eminem would have excelled in Matt Damon’s role in Elysium?