*Shaquille O’Neal recently revealed that he was offered a prominent movie role but turned it down for a reason that may surprise you.
Shaq joined Andrew Marchand and John Ourand on their sports media podcast this week and shared that he was offered the role of John Coffey in the Oscar-winning film “The Green Mile.” The role was famously played by the late Michael Clarke Duncan.
“I didn’t want to play the down-South African American guy during slavery,” Shaq explained. “I didn’t want to play that role. But the guy who played it, Michael Clarke Duncan, did an excellent job. I think I made the right decision because he did way better than I could have done, but I got offered that role.”
Watch Shaq tell it in the clip below.
READ MORE: Shaquille O’Neal Offers $5K Reward for Gunman Who Shot Cop in Georgia
Shaq could have had a major role in the “Green Mile.” https://t.co/04FnwW16TP pic.twitter.com/TM0gHZi7ln
— Andrew Marchand (@AndrewMarchand) November 11, 2021
“The Green Mile” was written and directed by Frank Darabont and based on Stephen King’s 1996 novel of the same name. It stars Tom Hanks as a death row prison guard during the Great Depression and Clarke Duncan plays an inmate at the prison. The film grossed $286 million and was nominated for four Academy Awards, including best-supporting actor for Clarke Duncan at the 2000 Academy Awards.
Meanwhile, in related news, O’Neal has contributed $5,000 to the $30,000 reward to find the gunman who shot a Georgia police officer.
Henry County Police Officer Paramhans Desai, 38, was shot Thursday evening while responding to a domestic disturbance call in McDonough, Georgia. A massive manhunt is now underway for 22-year-old Jordan Jackson, who allegedly shot the officer while Desai was making an arrest.
Desai survived the shooting but remains in critical condition, according to CBS News.
The reward is being partially funded by the Henry County Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Marshals Office, Crime Stoppers Atlanta and Shaq who has lived in Henry County for five years.
The NBA icon was hired by the sheriff’s department as the director of community engagement in February.
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