Before landing his iconic role as Legolas in "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, Orlando Bloom tried out for the lead role in Baz Luhrmann's "Moulin Rouge!" six times. In a 2019 interview with Howard Stern, Bloom revealed that he auditioned for the role of Christian around the same time as his audition for "The Lord of the Rings."
At the time of his "Moulin Rouge!" audition, the filmmakers were looking to cast unknown actors, which Bloom would have been given that he had only a few professional acting credits to his name. However, the filmmakers ultimately went in a different direction and cast Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor as the leads.
Despite missing out on the role, Bloom went on to find success as Legolas in "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, which was based on J.R.R. Tolkien's famed books. Even though he was relatively unknown at the time, Bloom's portrayal of the heroic Elf gifted in archery earned him a legion of fans and helped launch his career.
Bloom revealed to Stern that he was paid only $175,000 for his role in all three "LOTR" films, but he knew the value of the opportunity it presented. He went on to find even greater success as Will Turner in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise, and reprised his role as Legolas in "The Hobbit" movies.
In the end, Bloom considers the role of Legolas to be "the greatest gift of my life." Despite missing out on the lead role in "Moulin Rouge!," Bloom's perseverance paid off and he became one of the most recognizable actors of his generation.