Moulin Rouge Nearly Had A Completely Different A-List Lead

To promote the film “Raymond and Ray” from director Rodrigo García, Ethan Hawke spoke to Screen Rant and revealed an interesting fact about “Moulin Rouge” and himself. As it turns out, he tried incredibly hard to land the role of Christian way back when. “I gave one of the greatest screen tests of my life for ‘Moulin Rouge!’ I did not get the part. I crushed this audition,” he told the publication. At the end of the day, the powers that be decided Ewan McGregor — the man who stars in “Raymond and Ray” opposite Hawke — would fit better in the role, and the rest is history.

Despite giving the audition everything he had, only to not land a spot in “Moulin Rouge!” when it was all said and done, Hawke took the rejection in stride. He adds, “It just goes to show you how much I like Ewan’s work. I still went to see the movie on opening day and loved it. So, I got over it.” Although, he jokes that one of these days, his audition tape may make it into the public eye, and when it does, people are going to rethink some things in regard to Hawke missing the part. Still, it’s fair to say he’s enjoyed quite a solid career since then, so it’s not like it hurt him too much in the long run.

It stands to reason that Ethan Hawke would’ve made for a great Christian, but as fate would have it, Ewan McGregor was the man for the job.