Chris lee and his role as Saruman.

[Gorwingel]

Actually the true reason that Christopher played Saruman and not Gandalf (and I have heard him talk about this many times) was because they both agreed that he was too old, and that they needed a younger actor to play a character who is so incredibly active. Christopher Lee is actually 82 years old, and Ian is in his sixties. Mr. Lee would have most definitely have played Gandalf if the film would have been made years earlier. Though I don't think that Tolkien would have had a problem with the amazing performance that Sir Ian gave (In my opinion he didn't just play Gandalf, he became Gandalf )

[The Only Real Estel]

What if Chris Lee was Cast as Gandalf? This could just be me but I can not imagine anyone being Gandalf except Ian Mckellan. Even such a great actor as Lee, I just don't see him fit for the Gandalf role.

Well, I know I can't imagine anyone else playing Gandalf than Sir Ian, but if Christopher Lee had played him, then it be the exact opposite, as it usually is with just about everyone .
Still, I think McKellan was the best actor for the role, Son of Numenor said it well when discribing Lee's ideal role:

Lee...who is the master of playing the Cold, Well-Spoken & Cunning Villain.

Lee was in his element when he was playing Saruman, the character played well to his strongest traits, much more so than Gandalf would have. I have no doubt that, given his talent, Lee could've still made a decent Gandalf, but McKellan was simply the best choice for the role. As Gorwingel brought up, Ian was much more suited for the wizard because of his age, but his voice was also so well-suited for it. Lee's voice just isn't quite Gandalf, if you know what I mean, I think he would still be off even with his best effort.

[Boromir88]

Yes, Chris Lee does have that Saruman type voice, really not fit for Gandalf. Son of Numenor pointed out Chris Lee's talents as a villain, many of the movies Lee was in he was the villain. I mean Dracula, The Gremlins (2nd movie), and Star Wars Episode 2, are the movies that come to mind where Lee has played sort of that bad guy character. I can't really describe Lee's voice, it is slow and powerful, just really the perfect voice for Saruman, as Saruman was known for his ability to persuade. Gandalf, had more leadership qualities to him, it stated in ROTK, during the "Siege of Gondor" whenever Gandalf was around the hearts of men rose. Where Saruman, was more of a persuader, he had power and emphasis in his words to "poison" people's minds. Lee really brought out Saruman's character, as well as Sir Ian did with Gandalf's.

[The Only Real Estel]

Gandalf, had more leadership qualities to him, it stated in ROTK, during the "Siege of Gondor" whenever Gandalf was around the hearts of men rose. Where Saruman, was more of a persuader, he had power and emphasis in his words to "poison" people's minds.

Another point on Lee's voice:

I think Ian had much more of a voice for Gandalf in the sense that he sounded inspiring, whereas Mr. Lee's voice is much more monotone. Of course he could change it somewhat if he was cast for Gandalf, but I'm guessing it'd still sound a little to monotone to really sound inspirational.

[Lobelia]

Originally Posted by Boromir88

Yes, Chris Lee does have that Saruman type voice, really not fit for Gandalf. Son of Numenor pointed out Chris Lee's talents as a villain, many of the movies Lee was in he was the villain. I mean Dracula, The Gremlins (2nd movie), and Star Wars Episode 2, are the movies that come to mind where Lee has played sort of that bad guy character. I can't really describe Lee's voice, it is slow and powerful, just really the perfect voice for Saruman, as Saruman was known for his ability to persuade. Gandalf, had more leadership qualities to him, it stated in ROTK, during the "Siege of Gondor" whenever Gandalf was around the hearts of men rose. Where Saruman, was more of a persuader, he had power and emphasis in his words to "poison" people's minds. Lee really brought out Saruman's character, as well as Sir Ian did with Gandalf's.

Christopher Lee may be a great villain, but he is quite capable of doing warm, endearing roles as well. I've seen him play a wonderful, twinkle-eyed wizard in an otherwise awful TV series about Robin Hood and, in the Tolkien Ensemble's CD At Dawn In Rivendell, he is a superb Treebeard, far better, dare I say, than John Rhys-Davies, delightful as he was in the films.

[Essex]

And vice-versa, Sir Ian can definately play a baddy role. eg Magneto in XMen(s) and, of course, Richard III, the biggest 'baddy' in ALL literature.

Gorwingel is right as to why Christopher Lee did not play Gandalf. If you watch the Cast Interviews on the DVD Extended Edition of The Fellowship of the Ring it is explained there.
The role of Gandalf was physically demanding. Riding horses, walking, running etc. It also had a greater time commitment. Christopher was realistic enough to realize it would have been too much for him.
I believe he would have made a fine Gandalf had he been younger. He looks (and sounds) great for his age!

[Lobelia]

Originally Posted by Essex

And vice-versa, Sir Ian can definately play a baddy role. eg Magneto in XMen(s) and, of course, Richard III, the biggest 'baddy' in ALL literature.

Ooh, yes, absolutely! I saw the Richard III film first and thought him wonderfully villainous, though I had some sympathy for Magneto. Just goes to show both of them are wonderful actors who can act rings around many younger stars.

[The Squatter of Amon Rûdh]

I think that it would have been interesting to see what Christopher Lee would have made of Gandalf, since he's a tremendously versatile and experienced actor; but then we would have been deprived of his excellent characterisation of Saruman. Although I don't think that the script gave him as much to work with as is present in the book, I think that he really captured the fallen wisdom and flawed majesty of Tolkien's character. It probably helped that he reads The Lord of the Rings each year and has done since the first edition came out. I don't think that he'd be happy to hear his voice described as 'monotonous', though: he's been trained as an operatic singer and enjoys singing arias. To some, his voice is his best feature.

An interesting aside is that in his autobiography, Christopher Lee mentions some research that an acquaintance of his had done into on-screen swordplay:

As the result of a formidable amount of research on swordplay in films, and duelling with axes, daggers, swords, knives, etc., he'd established a kind of chart, in the way that sports pages maintain lists of leading goal scorers. ... Basil Rathbone and Errol Flynn have both chalked up eight. And at the top, Derek showed me Christopher Lee, with seventeen. It must be admitted that the others were generally victorious, whereas I was usually killed.