Highlights

• Daniel Radcliffe turned down This Is The End due to a subpar script, opting for the movie Horns instead.
• Emma Watson initially agreed to the film but withdrew because of uncomfortable script changes during filming.
• Despite mixed reviews, creators of This Is The End learned from cast rejections and script tweaks for a successful outcome.

Daniel Radcliffe shot to stardom with the Harry Potter franchise. After 10 years and eight films, Radcliffe bid farewell to the beloved character and moved on to other projects. Many scripts and studios came calling for the actor, seeing that he was primed to succeed. However, Daniel knew what he wanted and what he didn't want.

Being picky meant he would miss out on some big name movies along with a great cast. However, it seemed Radcliffe truly stood by his decision that he was not going to be part of the film This Is The End. What’s more, another Harry Potter alum — Emma Watson — backed out of the movie. But it seemed this did not affect their careers, despite This Is The End receiving positive to mixed reviews from critics.

Daniel Radcliffe Rejected This Is The End With Its Star-Studded Cast

Daniel Radcliffe was not convinced by the script of This Is The End, so he said no to the project

Daniel Radcliffe was the first choice actor the creators, Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen, had in mind for This Is The End. The film starred Seth Rogen, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Jay Baruchel, Danny McBride, Craig Robinson, Michael Cera and Emma Watson and many more celebrity cameos as parodies of themselves thrust in the middle of a fictionalized biblical apocalypse in Los Angeles.

Co-director Evan Goldberg told BuzzFeed that Radcliffe was who the production had in mind to join the apocalyptic survival movie. However, Radcliffe turned down the opportunity, choosing to star in an indie [flop] movie, Horns.

"Two years before we brought it to anybody else, we brought it to Daniel Radcliffe, and he rejected it because it was sh***y; it wasn't good enough," Goldberg said to BuzzFeed. "We got too excited, we jumped the gun on that. If we waited another year, I bet he would have done it."

The Harry Potter actor had also been respectful in his rejection. "[He] very respectfully explained that the material was not quite good enough, and he was right," Goldberg added. "It was a bad early version. He taught us a lesson. We learned something from him that day."

This was an eye-opener for the creative team. They realized "The initial version was too obvious." They knew they had work to do fine-tuning and revising the script to attract others.

Based on their 2007 short film Jay and Seth Versus the Apocalypse, Rogen and Goldberg realized their initial characterization was weak, coupled with the tense relationship between James Franco and Jonah Hill.

"Daniel Radcliffe–Harry Potter jokes and James Franco [as a] fashion-snobby materialistic guy. Jonah Hill was being mean to everybody. And so we changed it all. We made Franco have this endearing love for Seth, and we made Jonah turn into this big softy, and we just mixed things up. We made it a little too obvious at first."

The Harry Potter star did not sign on for the movie, despite the big-named cast, the fact that Radcliffe chose weird movie roles after Harry Potter, and also the possibility of working again with Harry Potter co-star Emma Watson.

Emma Watson Abruptly Left The Set Of This Is The End

Emma Watson put her foot down, refusing to shoot a scene she did not sign up for

After Daniel Radcliffe declined the offer to star in the apocalyptic film This Is The End, Emma Watson was the next call from the wizarding universe, and she said yes. At least, at first.

While shooting, Emma decided to back out of the film, owing to script changes.

The revised script of This Is The End featured a scene with appearances by Channing Tatum and Watson in a risqué setting, which the Beauty and the Beast actress was uncomfortable with and did not sign up for. She decided to back out amid shooting.

Watson got backlash for bowing from the film while the movie was in production, but writer and co-director, Seth Rogen came to her defense on X (Twitter), saying:

"Emma Watson did not 'storm off the set' and it's sh***y that the perception is that she did," he said.

"The scene was not what was originally scripted, it was getting improvised, changed drastically and was not what she agreed to," Rogen explained.

"We agreed on her not being in the scene together. I was thrilled about the opportunity to work with her and would be thrilled to get that opportunity again. I am very sorry and disappointed that it happened, and I wish I had done more to prevent it."

However, Seth Rogen had initially stated in his GQ Magazine interview that Emma Watson had walked off the set, which had sparked the backlash on Watson.

"I mean, I don’t look back on that and think, ‘How dare she do that?’ You know," Rogen told the magazine. "I sometimes think when you read something, when it comes to life it doesn’t seem to be what you thought it was."

"She came back the next day to say goodbye. She helped promote the film. No hard feelings and I couldn’t be happier with how the film turned out in the end," Rogen said.

Rogen certainly was not sorry with the way things turned out, saying "It was probably funnier the way we ended up doing it."

This Is The End Received Mixed Reviews But Praise From Fans

Fans called the film a hilarious, over-the-top metaphysical comedy gold

When This Is The End was released, it got mixed to positive reviews. This Is The End has an 82 percent critic score and 71 percent audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, proving that it was well-received. It also made $126 million at the box office.

Many critics and fans praised the fresh plot, but most of the execution was sloppy. According to Variety, This Is The End was “A sloppy, sophomoric, sometimes awfully funny horror-laffer hybrid that speculates as to how the cast are forced to.

The Guardian called the film "the world's biggest celeb in-joke combined with a titanic, weed-induced anxiety attack, and it is all too easy to imagine the stars in question having the idea for this film while getting stoned and getting the fear."

The critic would not put This Is The End on the same level as a Larry David comedy, but it was well received by fans, who found the plot refreshing, especially at the hands of the creators of Superbad.

It was a fun ride, right from the first scene to the end. Despite many changes and cast rejection, This Is The End turned out well, according to Seth Rogen.