Shaquille O’Neal has displayed his comedic acting skills in films like Kazaam and Steel and recently revealed he had the chance to star alongside Tom Hanks in the Hollywood hit film The Green Mile.
Shaq stopped by “The Marchand and Ourand Sports Media Podcast” and revealed that he turned down the role of John Coffey which ended up being played by Michael Clarke Duncan. The 1999 movie starred Tom Hanks as a prison guard in Louisiana during the Great Depression. Coffey, a Black man, is a prisoner on death row after being wrongfully convicted.
“That was my role in Green Mile, I turned it down,” O’Neal told the hosts.
When asked why he turned down the role, O’Neal said, “I didn’t want to play the down south African American guy during slavery. I didn’t want to play that role. But the guy who played it, Michael Clarke Duncan, did an excellent job. I think I made the right decision because he did way better than I could have done, but I got offered that role.”
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