Ever since Farhan Akhtar announced ‘Don 3’, speculation around the casting has dominated headlines. Before reports emerged about Ranveer Singh stepping away from the project and the non-cooperation directive issued against him by FWICE, fans were convinced that Shah Rukh Khan would return as the iconic Don after headlining the first two films of the franchise. The excitement around SRK’s comeback was immense, but things reportedly did not move forward as expected.
Why SRK reportedly declined ‘Don 3’
According to News18, industry reports stated that Shah Rukh Khan did not reject the film because he disliked the script. Instead, he was said to be uncertain about returning to the character unless he felt completely satisfied with the screenplay.It’s not like Shah Rukh Khan didn’t like the script. It’s just that Shah Rukh was not fully convinced. He knows Don is an iconic role and would like to step back into the character once he’s completely confident of the script. The box office scenario is not very healthy, and he wants to be doubly sure before signing on the dotted line.Reports further suggest that Farhan Akhtar revisited the screenplay, hoping the superstar would eventually reconsider. “As of now, Farhan Akhtar has gone back to the drawing board, and we can hope that the next time he meets SRK, the superstar will happily sign ‘Don 3’. The fans would be on cloud nine,” reports claimed.
SRK was busy reinventing his career
At the time, Shah Rukh Khan was occupied with projects like Dunki directed by Rajkumar Hirani, alongside Taapsee Pannu. He was also preparing for his comeback with ‘Pathaan’, co-starring Deepika Padukone and John Abraham, as well as ‘Jawan’, featuring Nayanthara, Vijay Sethupathi, Priyamani and Sanya Malhotra.Following the blockbuster success of ‘Pathaan’, many believed SRK might reconsider joining the franchise again. However, another report later suggested that the actor wanted to focus on large-scale entertainers with broader audience appeal. Reports suggest, “(Shah Rukh) is willing to do commercial films that cater to a universal section of audience, and ‘Don’ certainly doesn’t fit the bracket of cinema that he is willing to do for the coming few years.”Reports also suggest that Farhan Akhtar was reluctant to imagine anyone else stepping into the role. “Aapko lagta hai ke Farhan kissi doosre actor ke baare mein soch bhi sakta hai?” (Do you think Farhan could even imagine anyone else for the role?) reports claimed, while adding that Shah Rukh remained firm about not returning to the franchise. He felt he had given whatever he had to give to Don in his two Don films.Interestingly, SRK reportedly believed that the character could survive a recasting, much like the evolution of James Bond over the years. According to reports, he felt audiences would eventually accept a new face as Don.
How Ranveer Singh entered the picture
After Shah Rukh Khan’s decision, Farhan Akhtar allegedly had two choices, either pause the franchise or reinvent it with a new lead. This eventually opened the door for Ranveer Singh, who reportedly pursued the opportunity enthusiastically and convinced Farhan along with producer Ritesh Sidhwani to cast him in the rebooted version.
