While he delivered memorable acting performances in films like Performance (1970) and Ned Kelly (1970), his movie career could have looked radically different. From sci-fi cult classics to legendary horror musicals, here are four iconic roles Jagger almost landed.
1. Alex DeLarge in ‘A Clockwork Orange’
Long before Stanley Kubrick adapted Anthony Burgess’s dark dystopian novel into a cinematic masterpiece starring Malcolm McDowell, the film had a very different future lined up.
In the late 1960s, author Anthony Burgess sold the film rights, and producers heavily envisioned Mick Jagger as the lead villain, Alex DeLarge. Even crazier? The rest of the Rolling Stones were pitched to play his gang of “droogs”. Over 30 Hollywood figures even signed a petition supporting Jagger for the role. However, when Kubrick took control of the director’s chair, he insisted on casting an established actor, leaving Jagger’s dark movie debut on the cutting room floor.
2. Dr. Frank-N-Furter in ‘The Rocky Horror Picture Show’
When The Rocky Horror Show took London stage theater by storm in the early 1970s, Jagger attended a performance and instantly fell in love with the main character, the flamboyant mad scientist Dr. Frank-N-Furter.
When plans began for a 1975 feature film adaptation, Jagger expressed serious interest in playing the lead on screen. However, director Jim Sharman stood his ground, insisting that Tim Curry—who originated the role so brilliantly on stage—had to play the part in the movie. Curry got the role, but many fans still wonder what Jagger’s glam-rock take on the character would have looked like.
3. Feyd-Rautha in Alejandro Jodorowsky’s Unmade ‘Dune’
In the mid-1970s, avant-garde filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky embarked on an ambitious quest to adapt Frank Herbert’s classic sci-fi novel Dune.
Jodorowsky assembled an unbelievable cast that included artist Salvador Dalí, actor Orson Welles, and Mick Jagger as the ruthless, cunning Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen. Jagger personally agreed to star, but the production famously collapsed under financial weight before cameras could roll. The role of Feyd-Rautha was eventually played by another famous musician—Sting—in David Lynch’s 1984 film version.
4. Wilbur in Werner Herzog’s ‘Fitzcarraldo’
This wasn’t just a rumor—Jagger actually filmed scenes for this 1982 cinema classic. Cast as the assistant to an eccentric opera lover trying to haul a 320-ton steamship over a mountain in the South American jungle, Jagger spent weeks shooting on location with director Werner Herzog.
However, severe weather delays and lead actor Jason Robards falling ill pushed production back by months. The Stones were forced to launch a world tour, meaning Jagger had to leave the jungle. Herzog had to restart the film from scratch with Klaus Kinski, cutting Jagger’s character completely. Herzog later praised Jagger’s deleted footage, calling him a natural acting talent.