The 2004 movie role Steve Coogan was “pissed” he didn’t get: “I really wanted that part badly”

Steve Coogan has said he was “pissed off” to lose the lead role in the 2004 biopic *The Life and Death of Peter Sellers* to Geoffrey Rush. Coogan felt a strong connection to Sellers, whose comedy had influenced him, and saw the part as a chance to build his acting career beyond Alan Partridge.

Rush took the role and won a Golden Globe for his performance, which involved portraying Sellers and several of his characters, including Dr Strangelove and Clare Quilty. Coogan appeared in other projects in 2004, including *Ella Enchanted* and *Around the World in 80 Days*, and later played Sellers’ Dr Strangelove role in a stage production written by Armando Iannucci.