Bette Midler Reveals She Turned Down One Of Whoopi Goldberg’s Most Famous Roles

Bette Midler has surprisingly revealed that she turned down one of the most famous roles of the Oscar-winning star Whoopi Goldberg.

Bette Midler snubbed Sister Act because she didn't want to wear a nun's habit#BetteMidler #JeffreyKatzenberg #WhoopiGoldberg #SisterAct #Variety #MovieNews pic.twitter.com/AmCU7wTNOb

— BANG Showbiz (@BANGShowbiz) February 22, 2023

Midler Turned Down Major Role

Daily Mail reported that Midler, 77, is claiming that she was offered the lead role in the 1992 movie Sister Act, but she turned it down. 

“They came to me with Sister Act, and I said, ‘My fans don’t want to see me in a wimple,'” Midler said while appearing on the Just For Variety podcast. 

“Can you believe that? How off the wall is that? How crazy is that? Jeffrey Katzenberg called me every day, ‘Please, please,'” she continued. “I stood my ground because I really was afraid of the costume. Isn’t that amazing? I can wear anything but a nun’s habit?”

The part eventually went to Goldberg, 67, who was nominated for a Golden Globe for it. She went on to appear in one sequel, and a third Sister Act movie is currently in the works.

“Whoopi wore it all the way to the bank,” Midler added. “So God bless her. And she was perfect for it.”

Whoopi Goldberg invites Jimmy to make a cameo in the upcoming Sister Act 3! #FallonTonight pic.twitter.com/UqGSiK6uJ8

— The Tonight Show (@FallonTonight) November 30, 2022

Related: Whoopi Goldberg Says ‘Sister Act 3’ Is Happening, Gives A Cast Reunion Update

Midler Turns Down Another Role

Midler went on to say that she also turned down the lead role in the 1990 movie Misery, a part that eventually went to Kathy Bates, who won an Oscar for it.

“I just couldn’t. It was too violent,” she said. “The character was so not funny, so without any qualities of redemption. She cut off his foot. Come on. Who does that?”

As for her future career plans, Midler would like a role in the next season of the HBO show “White Lotus,” saying that she’d accept a part in it “in a New York minute.”

“It’s a big sendup,” she explained. “Mike White pokes fun at the worst kind of people, the truly entitled and rich people behaving badly. Everybody likes to see them get their comeuppance.”

“I really enjoy that,” Midler said. “It’s the great saga of the haves and the have-nots, which is eternal. I do tend to watch the stuff that’s — I don’t want to say hopeful — but I do like to laugh. I love to laugh, but there’s just not enough laughter. So I really do look for the stuff that makes me laugh.”

There is magic in the air. Please help us welcome our #CDGA25 Distinguished Collaborator, the luminous Bette Midler!#CDG892 #BetteMidler #DivineMissM pic.twitter.com/TXyAh9Lw1E

— Costume Designers Guild Awards (@CostumeAwards) February 7, 2023

Goldberg’s Plea To Maggie Smith

This comes after Goldberg spoke out to beg Maggie Smith, 88, to reprise her role of Mother Superior in the third Sister Act movie. 

“One of the things that I want to make sure I do while I’m here is I want to let Maggie Smith know that I’m holding the part of Mother Superior for you,” Goldberg said while being interviewed in the United Kingdom, according to Entertainment Weekly. “Because I just can’t do it with anybody but you.”

“So if you need me to come over here and shoot it and do whatever we have to do, we will do whatever you want us to do,” she continued. “But we don’t want to do it without you, Maggie.”

Full Story: Whoopi Goldberg Stoops To Begging Maggie Smith, 88, To Be In ‘Sister Act 3’ – ‘I’m Holding The Part Of Mother Superior For You’

Check out this full interview in the video below.

While we certainly don’t agree with Goldberg’s politics, we can’t deny that she was incredible in Sister Act, so it’s hard to see anyone else in that role. In the end, it all worked out how it was meant to, as she was far better in that movie than Midler ever could have been!