Juno Temple Says She Was 'Devastated' When She Didn't Land Role in Tim Burton's 'Alice in Wonderland'

Juno Temple is looking back on being turned down for Alice in Wonderland.

While speaking with Miles Teller for Interview, the 35-year-old Venom: The Last Dance actress recalled being “devastated” when she didn’t land the titular role in the 2010 movie directed by Tim Burton.

Keep reading to find out more…“I think quite early on in a career, you have to be able to understand why the ‘no’ is happening,” Juno said. “Of course, you can’t help but take it personally sometimes. I was 17 when Tim Burton made Alice in Wonderland. I have a first-edition copy of Alice in Wonderland that I actually sleep with on my bedside table like it’s the Bible.”

While Juno said that playing Alice was her “dream role,” she wasn’t able to land an audition with Tim and the role went to Mia Wasikowska.

“I remember my agent called, and the first thing he said was, ‘Are you sitting down? We just wanted to tell you that Tim Burton doesn’t think you are right for Alice, so there’s actually not going to be an audition for it,’” Juno recalled. “I was devastated.”

After watching Mia, now 35, play Alice, Juno realized that she wasn’t right for the role.

“I watched the movie. And this was a really important realization for me at 17 years old — I wasn’t right for Alice,” Juno said. “I’m the Queen of Hearts. When you see a final product, it always makes sense as to why you were not the fit for that role at that moment in time. I auditioned for a few of those Disney remakes. And it’s like, I’m not Cinderella.”

Juno went on to say that occasionally when she reads for a role and she doesn’t feel like it’s a good fit for her, she recommends a different actor.

“I think, ‘Maybe I’m not right for this, but you know who is? I have a really great person that you should meet,’” Juno explained. “People have always said that being competitive in this industry is important. And to a degree, it is. But I also think it’s really important to be supportive.”

She continued, “Actors, we’re a bunch of unusual people and we have unusual things that turn us on and turn us off. And I respect that on a huge level. Because like you said, film is forever. You don’t want to pretend.”

Venom: The Last Dance is out in theaters now. Watch the trailer here!