Few shows in the history of television have been as big and successful as Seinfeld. Yes, there have been huge sitcoms like The Office and Friends that have staked their own place among the best of all time, but the unreal success and continued syndication of Seinfeld helps prove that it could very well be the best sitcom of all time.
Back as the cast of the show was taking shape, Danny DeVito was offered the role of George Costanza. The former Taxi star could have landed the job with ease, but instead of jumping on the opportunity, he wound up passing on what wound up becoming an iconic role.
Let’s take a look at what happened.
Danny DeVito Was Offered The Role
Some actors seem born to play a specific character, and this is the case with Jason Alexander playing George Costanza. While there are many fine performers out there that could have done a good job as the character, there is no one that could have played the role better than Jason Alexander. However, at one point, Danny DeVito found himself up for the role.
People know DeVito from a bevy of different things these days, but during the time when Seinfeld was coming together, many people knew DeVito from his work on the smash-hit series, Taxi. Yes, he had plenty of other credits to his name during that time, but the monumental success of Taxi was easily his biggest role on the small screen.
Aside from thriving on the small screen, DeVito had also done exceptionally well for himself on the big screen, as well. Prior to Seinfeld’s 1989 debut, DeVito had appeared in major films like One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Romancing the Stone, and Twins. Not too shabby for the television star.
DeVito had proven himself to be a talented comedic performer, and he could elevate any project that he was taking part in. However, when he was offered the role of George Costanza, the performer wound up surprising the network by turning it down.
He Turned It Down
Hollywood projects are no sure thing, and while we all saw what Seinfeld became, there was simply no way of knowing this back in 1989. DeVito passed on the role, and Jason Alexander, the man who eventually played the character, touched on this and on other actors who were up for the gig during an interview with Howard Stern.
“For whatever reason, they didn't take it,” Alexander said.
"I think in the case of Danny he probably didn't want to be—his career, when we started Seinfeld, would've been at its apex, so he probably didn't want to do a sidekick role. Why Chris wouldn't do it? I don't know, maybe it didn't get to an offer stage. I don't know,” he continued.
Regardless of his reasoning, missing out on Seinfeld wound up being a mistake at the time for DeVito considering how massive the show wound up becoming. While he clearly saw something about the project that caused him to pass on it, we do have to wonder how things would have played out with him in the role.
DeVito aside, other actors like Steve Buschemi, David Alan Grier, and Paul Shaffer were all allegedly up for the role. Ultimately, the right person for the job would emerge and help turn the character into an icon on the small screen.
Jason Alexander Becomes George Costanza
As we stated earlier, it is almost impossible to imagine someone other than Jason Alexander playing George Costanza on the show, as he did such an amazing job with the character each week. His performance in each episode helped elevate the series and helped the character stand the test of time.
After making its debut back in 1989, Seinfeld became one of the greatest shows of all time, disappointing ending notwithstanding. Alexander would appear in over 170 episodes of the series during its legendary run on the small screen, and he cashed in while the show was in its prime.
As for Danny DeVito, well, things wound up working out just fine. He has had a number of hit projects through the years, and as far as television success is concerned, he made out nicely by landing the role of Frank Reynolds on It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. DeVito has starred on the show since 2006 and has appeared in over 140 episodes so far. Either way, he was going to be set.
Despite being offered the role of the legendary George Costanza and turning it down, Danny DeVito wound up finding another small screen legend to play.