- Nia Long, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, TV, 1991-1995. Jada was among the many auditioning for Will Smith’s girl, Lisa. She lost. “Too short.” Didn’t bother Smith. He married her in 1997.
- Carrie-Anne Moss, The Matrix, 1998. Er, not now, guys! When her agent called with news that the Wachowski siblings (then brothers Larry and Andy, now sisters Lana and Lilly) were considering her for the action-packed Trinity – Jada was nine months pregnant with future star Jaden Smith. Proud father, Will Smith, backed away from the lead role of Neo: “I would have messed it up.” Jada was back in perfect shape when joining the franchise in 2002 as Niobe.
- Halle Berry, X-Men quartet, 1999-2013. Angela Bassett, Janet Jackson and Jada Pinkett Smith were up for the weather-manipulating Ororo Munroe/Storm… leader of the X-Men when Cyclops is away. Bassett later played Amanda Waller in DC Comics’ Green Lantern, 2011, and Queen Ramonda in Marvel’s Black Panther, 2017. Director Bryan Singer fell for Halle in the 1998 biopic, Introducing Dorothy Dandridge. Co-star Ian McKellen was Berry’s other big fan. “I never saw Halle in between movies, but we caught up each time as if we were brother and sister. All sorts of confessions were made on either side. We became chums.”
Birth year: Death year: Other name: Casting Calls: 3