Trent Reznor was approached about scoring and playing a minor part in the film, but the news leaked before the final decision and Reznor voted to pass on the project as the surprise element of his participation had already been lost.

om Hardy was approached for the title role of Lincoln, but had to turn it down due to scheduling conflicts with The Dark Knight Rises (2012). Later, Eric Bana, Timothy Olyphant, Adrien Brody, Josh Lucas, James D’Arcy, Rob Huebel and Oliver Jackson-Cohenwere considered to play the role before Benjamin Walker was cast.