The creative team behind the 2011 detective game LA Noire considered Jon Hamm, star of Mad Men, for the role of protagonist Cole Phelps. However, the developers ultimately decided that Aaron Staton, who ultimately played Phelps, was a better fit for the character's nuances.
Daniel McMahon, a writer who worked on LA Noire, explained in an interview that the connection between Mad Men and the game, which featured several actors from the AMC series, was facilitated by a shared casting director. Hamm was indeed discussed for the role of Cole Phelps, with visuals of him fitting the game's aesthetic shared among the team. Despite Hamm's suitability for the game's tone, McMahon elaborated on the directorial vision.
"Jon Hamm would've been a much better Jack Kelso because he's a character of great power, he's a character of control. Jon Hamm knows what he's doing and gets s**t done," McMahon stated. He contrasted this with Cole Phelps, noting Staton's superior ability to portray the character's fragility. "Aaron Staton was much better at portraying Cole's fragility. A lot of the time, Cole's flapping around having no idea what he's doing. He's very smart, but he's also young, not very experienced, and he's just trying his best." McMahon also acknowledged that while Hamm would have been "incredible, and expensive," Staton was ultimately a more fitting choice for Phelps.
Both Cole Phelps and Don Draper, Hamm's breakout character, share thematic parallels, including experiences as World War II veterans attempting to outrun past traumas and engaging in infidelity. However, their portrayals and narrative trajectories diverge, with Phelps's story emphasizing his inexperience and struggle to cope.
Fans have long hoped for a sequel to LA Noire, and Strauss Zelnick, CEO of Rockstar's parent company Take-Two, has previously offered a glimmer of hope. Zelnick indicated that the company regularly reviews its intellectual properties for potential future projects, though no specific announcements regarding LA Noire have been made, emphasizing that any such news would come directly from Rockstar.