January Jones Originally Auditioned For A Different Mad Men Role
January Jones received critical acclaim for her role acting opposite Jon Hamm as Don Draper's wife, Betty Draper, on "Mad Men," but fans of the AMC television series might not realize that the casting process could have gone very differently from the choices that they saw play out on their screens.
Considering that she played Betty Draper from its premiere in 2007 to its finale in 2015 (via the New Yorker), it's hard to picture Jones as anyone else. Before she landed the role of Betty, however, Jones almost played another main role in the series, as she revealed to The Hollywood Reporter ahead of the show's finale.
What's more, the cast and crew dished that the character of Betty Draper was written into the series for Jones when it was decided that she wasn't the right fit for the role for which she had auditioned, as mentioned to THR.
January Jones auditioned to play Peggy Olson
An interview with The Hollywood Reporter revealed that January Jones originally had her sights set on playing secretary Peggy Olson, a role that ultimately went to Elisabeth Moss. Moss explained that she was the first person to read for the role of Peggy, but Jones said that she also auditioned to play Peggy twice (via The Hollywood Reporter).
Matthew Weiner, the creator of "Mad Men," decided to write scenes to flesh out the character that became Betty Draper, as told by Jones, "Matt said, 'Well, there's another role, but I don't really know what's going to happen with her.'" Weiner explained to The Hollywood Reporter that he had to fight to create the relationship dynamic between Betty and Don Draper because the show was supposed to focus solely on the workplace.
From that one small role, Betty Draper wound up being an important character over the course of the series, and Jones was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series in 2010 (via the Television Academy).
Jones enjoyed playing Betty Draper
After playing the role of Betty Draper for so many years, it is understandable that January Jones could have wanted to move on from her time on "Mad Men." Reports from outlets such as ABC News even described how fans became angry with Jones in real life because of their feelings about Betty's character arc, with Jones commenting at one event, "Yeah, they were like mean to me on the street," in reference to fans' reactions to various storylines.
Despite the occasional difficulties that came with separating herself from the fictional Betty Draper when interacting with the public, Jones spoke with Deadline on the ending of "Mad Men" and likened it in part to grieving, "I'm also sort of heartbroken, like a friend has passed away or something. It's very bizarre." She also spoke about her satisfaction with the "closure" that she felt Betty and Don Draper received in Betty's final scene.