Rana Daggubati impressed fans with his powerful portrayal of Bhallaladeva, the menacing antagonist, in the Baahubali film franchise. However, it has now come to light that he wasn’t the first choice for the part. During a segment on the Moden Masters: SS Rajamouli, a Netflix documentary, Rana revealed that the makers initially wanted a Hollywood star to play the character on the big screen but things didn’t work.
Jason Momoa Was The First Choice For Bhallaldeva In ‘Baahubali’: Rana Daggubati
Modern Masters: SS Rajamouli, an English-language documentary, takes a closer look at the ‘RRR’ director’s professional and personal life. In one of its segments, Rana Daggubati revealed that the producers of ‘Baahubali’ wanted to cast Jason Momoa as Bhallaladeva in the period action drama but that did not materialise. Following this, they went to Rana.
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“The producer, Shobu Yarlagadda, came and just told me that it’s a period war-based kind of film and that they were looking at me playing the antagonist. I replied that I’d love to have a narration. I also asked him, ‘Who’s the actor you went to before you came to me?’. He said, ‘We tried to reach Jason Momoa from Game Of Thrones!’. I said, ‘Okay, that’s a good second number’,” he said.
Jason Momoa is best known for his work on ‘Game of Thrones’. He also impressed fans with his portrayal of the titular superhero in ‘Aquaman’.
About The ‘Baahubali’ Films
The ‘Baahubali’ series, comprising ‘Baahubali: The Beginning’ and ‘Baahubali 2: The Conclusion,’ centres on the battle between Amarendra Baahubali and his elder cousin Bhallaladeva. Helmed by SS Rajamouli, the Prabhas-led films became massive hits upon release and redefined the tenets of Indian cinema.
‘Baahubali: The Beginning,’ filmed on a budget of Rs 180 crore, earned Rs 650 crore globally in 2015. Its sequel, ‘Baahubali 2: The Conclusion’, produced at Rs 250 crore, earned an extraordinary Rs 1800 crore worldwide in 2017 and became the second highest-grossing Indian film of all time.
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