Released by Rockstar Games in 2011 and regarded as one of the masterpieces of the detective genre, "L.A. Noire" left a deep impression on players with its lead character, Cole Phelps. The character was played by Aaron Staton, whom we know from the series "Mad Men." However, new comments from Daniel McMahon, one of the game’s screenwriters, reveal that a completely different, more popular, and considerably more expensive star was considered for the lead role.
In an exclusive interview with IGN, screenwriter Daniel McMahon stated that the casting director for the famous series "Mad Men" and the "L.A. Noire" project was the same person. For this reason, Jon Hamm, who rose to worldwide fame playing Don Draper in the series, was seriously considered for the role of Cole Phelps at the time.
"This topic was not discussed openly back then. But looking back now, I understand the perspective and vision of that time much better. Jon Hamm is an incredibly talented actor, but he is not Cole Phelps*."*
— Daniel McMahon, "L.A. Noire" Screenwriter
According to McMahon, Aaron Staton was more successful at reflecting Cole Phelps’s inner world, elegance, and inexperience. Cole Phelps is not a perfect hero by nature. He is an exceptionally intelligent but also young and inexperienced person in life and in his profession, simply trying to do everything as well as possible.
"I think Jon Hamm could have done an excellent job in the role, but he would have been quite expensive. More importantly, at the end of the day, he might not have been as successful or natural as Aaron Staton at portraying the fragile and youthful spirit of Cole Phelps’s character," the screenwriter noted.
Despite years having passed since the game’s release and it having sold millions of copies worldwide, "L.A. Noire" still has not received an official sequel. The studio that developed the game, "Team Bondi," was shut down following investigations by the International Game Developers Association (IGDA) into internal tensions and allegations of intolerable working conditions. When the studio ceased operations, it was approximately $1.4 million in debt, and all its assets were purchased by film company "Kennedy Miller Mitchell."
Nevertheless, Strauss Zelnick, head of "Take-Two," the parent company of "Rockstar Games," stated earlier this year that the company planned to bring back older franchises it owned, raising hopes that "L.A. Noire" could be among those projects. However, lead actor Aaron Staton said in a 2021 interview that he had "no information" about a sequel.
