When Gwen Stefani Lost an Iconic Role to Angelina Jolie For a $486 Million Movie: “Angelina Beat Me”

One of the most talked-about films of 2005 almost used a different lead actress. In a July 2022 episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Gwen Stefani mentioned briefly how she tried out for the role of Jane Smith in Mr. & Mrs. Smith.

The No Doubt singer and Voice coach revealed to Ellen DeGeneres that she lost out to Angelina Jolie, per HuffPost. "What movie role have you auditioned for that people would be surprised to know?" DeGeneres asked, to which the Grammy-winning singer-songwriter said Mr. & Mrs. Smith, and remarked, “Angelina beat me,” as the audience simultaneously gasped. She didn't go into detail about the audition, but she did add, “That could’ve been a different story.” 

In the Doug Limon-directed film Mr. & Mrs. Smith, starring Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, a leisurely suburban couple's marriage suffers serious damage when they learn they are undercover assassins for opposing agencies, sent to kill each other. The film was a critical and financial success, earning $486 million, according to reports, at the global box office, per Entertainment Weekly.

Although Stefani's unsuccessful audition for Mr. & Mrs. Smith seemed to surprise most of the DeGeneres audience, she has previously discussed it. “It was between me and Angelina Jolie, and I’m like, ‘Oh, great. I got a shot here,’” she said of the project in a 2008 Vogue interview. “The whole acting thing really feels like something I could do. Whenever I’ve done it, whenever I had moments where it works, it’s just like performing. You hit a moment. And that’s what movies are: a series of moments.”

While Stefani did not land the role of Jane Smith, she did receive a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination in 2005 for her work in Martin Scorsese's The Aviator, starring Leonardo DiCaprio. “Martin Scorsese’s driving in New York City, and he sees my Teen Vogue cover on the side of a bus stop shelter,” Stefani said, per NBC, explaining how she got cast. “And he’s like, ‘Who’s that girl? Let’s get her!’ I had Leonardo DiCaprio tell me the whole story in Martin Scorsese’s voice, so it was pretty bizarre.”

Stefani went on to say that it “was like a dream come true” and that she harnessed the same creative streak she utilized as the frontwoman for the '90s band No Doubt. “I’ve been trying out for movies for years,” Stefani said. “Because it all comes from the same place, all the creative things inside you, and I’ve wanted to do it for a long time. But when you’re touring and writing and busy, you can’t compete with some of these actresses that are like, that’s what they do every day.”

The Hollaback Girl singer is about to get a Hollywood Walk of Fame Star for herself, cementing her achievements in the pop genre. On July 3, Stefani shared a post on Instagram, sharing the life-changing milestone with her fans along with a beautiful flashback photo from her youth. "Who’s gonna tell her she’s receiving a Hollywood Walk of Fame Star?!" she wrote in the caption. "this feels like a dream!"