The man who made Logan Roy’s icy takedowns on Succession look like an art form didn’t just dominate the Roy family dynasty; he could’ve also ruled Westeros. Yeah, you read that right. Cox had a shot at playing Game of Thrones’ very own King Robert Baratheon. But guess what? He turned it down.
In true Cox style, he doesn’t sugarcoat his reasoning: “I was supposed to be a king called Robert Baratheon, who apparently died when he was gored by a boar in the first season,” he reveals in his book. “I know very little about Game of Thrones, so I can’t tell you whether or not he was an important character… and I’m not going to Google it just in case he was, because I turned it down.” Classic.
Baratheon was actually a big deal (though not for long, considering he didn’t even survive season one), but Cox didn’t see much point in joining a show just to get impaled by a wild animal early on. Plus, the paycheck? Not exactly tempting. “The money was not all that great,” Cox notes. And with his early exit written into the script, the long-term financial gain wasn’t looking too hot either. So, instead, Mark Addy donned the crown and, well, met the boar.
But Cox didn’t stop there—he also passed on a role in Pirates of the Caribbean. That’s right, no Governor for him. In his memoir, he explains why he nixed the role: it was, in his words, “thankless.” Sure, it would’ve been a solid cash cow, but Cox wasn’t about to tie himself down to a series that, in his view, was more about Johnny Depp’s Jack Sparrow antics than any meaningful character development.
“I think I blotted my copybook by turning down the Governor,” Cox admits, referencing his previous work with Pirates director Gore Verbinski on The Ring. But he wasn’t about to jump on the swashbuckling train for a role he found uninspiring. “It would have been a money-spinner, but of all the parts in that film, it was the most thankless.”
And speaking of Depp? Cox didn’t mince words there, either. “Johnny Depp is so overblown, so overrated,” he wrote, throwing some serious shade. “I mean, Edward Scissorhands. Let’s face it, if you come on with hands like that and pale, scarred-face makeup, you don’t have to do anything. And he didn’t.” Ouch. But Cox wasn’t done. He continued, “And subsequently, he’s done even less.” Double ouch. He acknowledges that people loved Depp back in the day—but quickly adds that “they don’t love him so much these days.”
It’s not like Cox was hurting for work after turning down these big franchises. He bagged the role of a lifetime as Logan Roy, the snarling patriarch of HBO’s Succession, and that’s a move even the mightiest kings of Westeros might envy. Cox recently bid farewell to the series, reflecting on his time as Roy in an emotional social media post. “We have now come to the end,” he wrote. “And what has been, in my career, certainly the greatest work experience ever.”
Sure, he could’ve taken a detour through Westeros or sailed the high seas with Jack Sparrow, but does Cox regret it? Not one bit. He played by his own rules, and it paid off big time. Succession wasn’t just a hit—it became one of those rare cultural moments where everything clicked. “The harmony between crew and cast was truly amazing,” he added, calling it “the greatest work experience ever.”
And that’s just how Brian Cox rolls. Whether it’s a boar-hunting king, a Disney governor, or Johnny Depp’s shadow, if the role didn’t scream “interesting,” Cox wasn’t going to sign on the dotted line. His career is proof that sometimes, saying “no” to a global franchise or a fat paycheck is exactly how you end up with one of TV’s most iconic roles.
In Putting the Rabbit in the Hat, Cox drops bomb after bomb, peeling back the curtain on a career filled with almosts and what-ifs. But don’t get it twisted—Cox isn’t losing sleep over any of them. He’s done things his way, with his trademark snark and sharp decision-making, and he’s got a trophy case full of accolades to prove it.
So, while other actors might regret skipping the ride to Westeros or a spot next to Jack Sparrow, Cox is over here, sipping his tea and doing just fine. After all, he’s Brian Cox—Succession’s Logan Roy—and he doesn’t need a boar or a boat to make his mark.
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