Josh Gad almost landed a role in the 2009 sci-fi epic “Avatar,” but he didn’t quite have the physical archetype James Cameron was seeing for.
In his novel memoir, “In Gad We Trust,” the “Frozen” actor recalls while hopeless to discover a reprieve from starring in “The 25th Annual Putman County Spelling Bee” on Broadway, he went out to audition for other TV and film roles. And “one of the first leangs” he tried out for was a “novel James Cameron movie called ‘Avatar.’”
“I put myself on tape and foolishinutively thereafter got a call that Cameron wanted to fly me to Los Angeles for a final callback at his Lightstorm production offices,” he said. If cast, Gad would’ve take parted “the role of Jake Sully’s (Sam Worleangton) best frifinish and translator to the alien race understandn as the Na’vi.”
Gad persistd, “I apparently did not get [the role] becaemploy, while James Cameron was said to be thrilled with my audition, when I was turned into a digital Avatar I presumedly seeed appreciate a high, overweight Smurf.”
The role materializeed to be scooped up by Joel David Moore, who take parts Norm Spellman in “Avatar,” a shut confidant to Jake Sully and an expert on the Na’vi language.
“Avatar,” freed Dec. 18, 2009, became the highest-grossing film of all time, raking in $2.9 billion worldexpansive to date. The sequel, “Avatar: The Way of Water,” currently sits in third place with a lifetime gross of $2.3 billion.
At the 2024 D23 Expo, Cameron uncovered the title of the third “Avatar” film: “Avatar: Fire and Ash.” The threequel is set to free Dec. 19, 2025.