Julie Andrews was met with disappointment after trying for the role of Eliza Dolittle in My Fair Lady, which eventually went to Audrey Hepburn. Shortly after, Julie got the offer to star as the lead in Mary Poppins, which turned out to be more successful than My Fair Lady.
Mary Poppins turned out to be one of Julie’s most recognized roles, for which she won her first Oscar award at 29. Although My Fair Lady was nominated for some Oscar categories, none of them included a nod to Hepburn for playing Eliza Dolittle.
Julie Andrews was perfect for ‘Mary Poppins’ after getting passed over for a different role in ‘My Fair Lady’
She was pregnant when Walt Disney offered her the titular role in Mary Poppins, but he was so certain of her potential that he tailored the production to her convenience. With a budget of $6 million, Disney made back $103 million at the box office. Meanwhile, My Fair Lady made $31 million less with a $17 million investment.
Due to Mary Poppins’s nostalgic success, it received a sequel as recently as 2018, with Emily Blunt playing the title role. Before then, it was referenced in jokes, conversations, and movies like Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2. Julie’s role was followed by another in Sound of Music, taking her further up Hollywood star status.
Why was Julie Andrews rejected for ‘My Fair Lady’?
The studio head of Warner Bros. at the time, Jack Warner, took the logical route of casting an already popular actress—Audrey Hepburn. She already had industry acclaim with past films like Roman Holiday, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, and Charade.
Julie— who was discovered by Walt during Broadway’s Camelot musical, was just an upcoming act with only stage credits. My Fair Lady was a hit upon release, but lacked the timeless quality of Mary Poppins as it was even considered outdated in the ‘60s.
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