Though John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson are iconic in the movie, Quentin Tarantino's other choices for Pulp Fiction recasts it in some interesting ways. The crime saga served as Tarantino's follow-up to his acclaimed debut with Reservoir Dogs. Despite being only his second movie, Tarantino had a long list of actors to potentially sign on to play the dynamic duo of hitmen Vincent Vega (Travolta) and Jules Winnfield (Jackson). These characters are part of pop culture, and the star-studded cast is a big part of what makes it so beloved. While things seemed to work out perfectly, these Pulp Fiction recasts imagine what might've been in an alternate reality.
Regarded as Tarantino's masterpiece, Pulp Fiction tells a non-linear story of various criminals and anti-heroes on outrageous and bloody misadventures, which earned the praise of critics and viewers. The now iconic cast wasn't always the one the world now knows, and Vincent and Jules could have been much different with Pulp Fiction recasts. Because Pulp Fiction was early in his career, Tarantino was just starting to build his list of go-to actors. As such, when casting the unforgettable roles of Vincent and Jules, Pulp Fiction considered some intriguing other options.
Pulp Fiction: Every Actor Who Almost Played Jules & Vincent
It seems like an impossible idea to see Pulp Fiction recast with a different Vincent Vega other than John Travolta. However, Tarantino’s first option for Vincent was Michael Madsen, who played Mr. Blonde/Vic Vega in Reservoir Dogs, but Madsen chose to appear in Kevin Costner's Wyatt Earp instead. Harvey Weinstein pushed for Daniel Day-Lewis in the part, but in the end, John Travolta took the role, which helped revitalize his career and got him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.
As for Jules Winnfield, Tarantino wrote the character with Samuel L. Jackson in mind, but as Jackson assumed that the audition was merely a reading, he was overshadowed by Paul Calderón. Jackson was convinced to audition one more time and got the role. Calderón, on the other hand, appeared instead as the bartender at Marsellus' club. At some point in the development of Pulp Fiction, Tarantino had other very different ideas for Vincent and Jules. He contemplated having Tim Roth as Vincent and Gary Oldman as Jules, rewriting the roles as "two English guys." Thankfully, that idea was left behind, and Roth still appeared in the film as Ringo/Pumpkin.
Oldman didn't appear in the film at all, but he was also considered for the role of Lance, Vincent’s drug dealer, which ultimately went to Eric Stoltz. It's hard to say if any of these options would have been a better Vincent and Jules than Travolta and Jackson, but in the end, these changes made way for the Vega brothers, brought Travolta's career back to life, and left audiences with one of the best duos in cinema
Many Pulp Fiction Cast Members Were Tarantino's Second Choice
Travolta and Jackson are so perfect in their roles that any Pulp Fiction recasts seem silly. However, an interesting document for movie fans appeared online years ago, showing some of the other choices that Tarantino had in mind for these roles. Included with one of the original Pulp Fiction scripts, Tarantino listed his dream casting for each role and included possible alternate choices. The list reveals that Vicent and Jules were written with Michael Madsen and Laurence Fishburne in mind, though he writes that Travolta is a "strong, strong, strong second choice" for Vincent. Before Jackson became Tarantino's frequent collaborator, he was the second choice for Jules as well.
As it turns out, most of the actors who ended up being cast in Pulp Fiction were not listed as Tarantino's top choice. Butch (Willis) had Matt Dillon marked as the top choice, John Cusack was listed above Eric Stoltz for the role of Lance, and Uma Thurman wasn't even on the list for possible Mia candidates with Virginia Madsen as the top pick. With so many big names listed, it's clear that Tarantino stumbled onto the ensemble of the final movie rather than built it exactly as he envisioned.
It makes it all the more impressive that each role feels perfectly cast. The fact that these actors rose to the tops of those lists and got the roles in Pulp Fiction suggests the actors and the movie were a match that was always meant to be.