If Christina Hendricks had listened to her former agency, Mad Men may not have had the character of Joan as we know her today.

Apparently these misguided souls believed that if Hendricks took the role, she’d be committing career suicide!

“[They said], ‘It’s a period piece, it’s never going to go anywhere. We need you to make money and this isn’t going to make money.’”

Hendricks recounted the conflict during her interview with British news organization The Guardian.

Both the 39-year-old actress and her manager loved the part and saw the potential in the show.

When Hendricks refused to pass up a role she felt was right for her, the agency ended up dropping her.

If you're having a bad day, remember that you're not the agency that dropped Christina Hendricks for taking #MadMen http://t.co/IDBa1JYqkY

— Variety (@Variety) August 4, 2014

Said Hendricks, “I had been on several shows that were meant to be the big ones, that would go on forever…and they didn’t.”

The actress then thought to herself, “why not do the one you’re in love with and take a chance on that?”

Hendricks followed her heart right into a memorable role as the character Joan Holloway, everyone’s favorite red-haired bombshell.

One can’t help but wonder what her former agency, the ones so convinced Hendricks was making a mistake, had to say for themselves after the fact?

She’s spent several seasons on an award-winning show and came away one of the biggest standouts, creating a memorable character in the process.

Odds are her former bosses are some place choking on crow feathers with a side of humble pie.

It just goes to show that sometimes the very people charged with guiding your career are the last people you should be listening to.

Mad Men's Christina Hendricks speaks out about her decision not to have kids http://t.co/TyZcffX78N pic.twitter.com/a99sKQWQZG

— Stylist Magazine (@StylistMagazine) August 4, 2014

Hendricks listened to her heart and her desire for happiness and it seems to be leading her places.

Mad Men enters its final season in 2015.

As for Hendricks, she recently starred in the movie God’s Pocket, opposite the late Philip Seymour Hoffman. It’s directed by her Mad Men co-star John Slattery.

Image via YouTube