Benedict Cumberbatch & Jessica Chastain Auditioned for True Blood's Bill & Sookie

Alan Ball, the creator of HBO’s hit show True Blood, made the big reveal that both Benedict Cumberbatch and Jessica Chastain both auditioned for lead roles in the program!

Benedict auditioned for the role of Bill Compton, while Jessica auditioned for the role of Sookie. The roles ended up going to Stephen Moyer and Anna Paquin.

The reveal was made during Vulture‘s annual festival

Other fun facts revealed during Alan‘s talk were that Jennifer Lawrence auditioned to play a “were-panther girl” and that HBO wasn’t sure they should even pick up the show for season 1!

True Blood ran from 2008 to 2014.