"The Notebook" could have been a VERY different movie. Because GEORGE CLOONEY and PAUL NEWMAN almost starred in it. Paul would have played the old man, with George as the younger version of him.
George says, quote, "We met and said, 'This is it. It's going to be great.'"
But then George went home and watched a bunch of Newman's movies, and got cold feet. Quote, "He's one of the handsomest guys you've ever seen. We met up [again] and I said, 'I can’t play you. I don't look anything like you. This is insane.'
"We just wanted to do it because we wanted to work together, [but] it ended up being not the right thing for us to do."