Australian actor Hugh Jackman has had a prolific career as an actor, both onstage and off. He began his career in theater, performing in many Melbourne productions such as Sunset Boulevard and Summa Cabaret. However, his career skyrocketed after he landed the biggest and most memorable role in his career: starring as Wolverine in the 2000 film, X-Men.
Before long, Hugh Jackman became synonymous with the clawed superhero, and this status propelled him to snag headlining roles in some of Hollywood’s biggest films outside of Marvel. From portraying former prisoner Jean Valjean in Les Misérables to the ambitious P. T. Barnum in The Greatest Showman, Jackman’s star presence had earned him many accolades like a Golden Globe Award and two Tony Awards. However, not every role was meant to be for Jackman. Here are 10 instances where Hugh Jackman turned down or did not get a role.
James Bond – Casino Royale (2006)
The fictional British secret agent known as James Bond, or 007, is one of the biggest names in film history. With 25 films centered around the popular spy, many actors have taken on the mantle of Bond in various reboots of the franchise — from Sean Connery in 1962’s Dr. No to Daniel Craig in 2021’s No Time to Die. When the time came for another reboot by Eon Productions after 2002’s Die Another Day, the search for the next Bond was underway.
Many actors auditioned and were in contention for the highly coveted role of Bond, and among the crop was Hugh Jackman. In an interview with Indiewire, Jackman shared that he “didn’t want to do the same things” such as “the role of the hero action star.” This reasoning led to him turning down the role of Bond in Casino Royale (2006), with him citing time restraints and an interest in playing characters who “color outside the lines” as additional reasons.
The role ultimately went to Daniel Craig, who went on to star in four additional films in the Bond franchise.
Unknown Role – Cats (2019)
Tom Hooper’s high-budget musical, Cats, was an infamously bad entry in 2019’s film lineup compared to some of the year’s greatest films. The film suffered from bad visual effects and poor critical ratings, which resulted in it becoming a box office bomb. However, the film was full of an ensemble cast consisting of Jennifer Hudson, Judi Dench, Idris Elba and Taylor Swift among others.
Among the many celebrities such as Anne Hathaway who fortunately turned down roles in the film, Hugh Jackman was one of them. Hooper had offered a role to Jackman, presumably to the two’s work in Les Misérables, but time restraints did not allow the role to come to fruition. Although Jackman may be grateful that he declined to star in the film after its negative response by fans and critics.
Eric Matthews – Miss Congeniality (2000)
The 2000 action comedy Miss Congeniality stars Anne Hathaway as Gracie Hart, an FBI agent who goes undercover at the Miss America pageant in order to stop a terrorist from bombing the event. Throughout the film, Hart interacts with Eric Matthews (Benjamin Bratt), a fellow FBI agent who tags along and eventually falls in love with Hart. While Bratt’s performance as the charming agent was memorable, he was not the only actor to read for the part.
Hugh Jackman was among the list of actors who read for the role alongside Bullock. However, he said that while she was great, his nervousness got the best of him while auditioning because it was his first-ever screen test with another actor. While Bratt ultimately snagged the role, Jackman was able to land a rom-com role the following year in James Mangold’s Kate & Leopold.
Phantom – Phantom of the Opera (2004)
A musical film would not have been a foreign concept for Hugh Jackman, and 2004’s film adaptation of The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux of the same name was no exception. The film, directed by Joel Schumacher and written by Schumacher and Andrew Lloyd Webber, centered around the titular Phantom. When considering actors for the role, Hugh Jackman was one with fond consideration. He was offered the part of the deformed stage musician, but he had scheduling conflicts with the action horror film, Van Helsing, which caused him to drop out of consideration.
Jack Sparrow – Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)
Disney is a massive juggernaut of entertainment content with a plethora of iconic intellectual properties and the 2003 film, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, kick-started yet another franchise for the company.
The film stars Johnny Depp in his most memorable role as Jack Sparrow, a pirate on the quest to rescue Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) from a crew aboard the Black Pearl with his partner Will Turner (Orlando Bloom). Depp’s charismatic portrayal of the character has led to high profits for the franchise, yet the role was originally not meant for him. One of the film’s screenwriters and original story creators, Stuart Beattie, said he named the character after Jackman and intended for the role to go to Jackman. However, Depp’s star quality was greater at the time compared to the relatively unknown Jackman, and the role went to Depp instead.
Lead Role – Pride and Glory (2008)
The Gavin O’Connor-directed crime drama, Pride and Glory (2008), had a long pre-production phase. O’Connor and his brother Greg began writing the film in 1999, and the script was taken up by Focus Lines Features in 2000 with Joe Carnahan tasked with rewriting it. A year later, the script was taken by the company, Intermedia, and the film was negotiated with Mark Wahlberg and Hugh Jackman to star. While it is not officially stated which role Jackman would have received, both he and Wahlberg were in talks to portray the two lead characters, Jimmy and Ray. However, the Sept. 11 attacks and other issues caused the film’s production to be delayed until 2005.
In 2005, New Line Cinema bought the rights to the film, and Wahlberg and Jackman were replaced with Colin Farrell and Edward Norton as the newest leads. The film was released in 2008 with only a million over its production budget at the box office.
Corny Collins – Hairspray (2007)
Hugh Jackman’s fellow X-Men cast mate James Marsden beat him out for the role of Corny Collins in the 2007 romantic comedy musical, Hairspray. The film, set in the 1960s, follows Tracy Turnblad (Nikki Blonsky) as she tries to become a star on The Corny Collins Show and fight against the show’s racial segregation policies.
Marsden starred as the bright Corny Collins, the host of the titular program who aids in the fight against segregation. Along with Jackman, James Marsden also edged ahead of Joey McIntyre after a clip of Marsden singing on Ally MacBeal caught the attention of the director.
Pikachu – Detective Pikachu (2019)
In recent years, video game adaptations have become increasingly popular at the box office and 2019’s Detective Pikachu is one of its many examples. The film is considered to be one of the best family movies, and became the highest-grossing video game adaptation in the year of its release. The film has seen high success, launched the character of Justice Smith, and starred Ryan Reynolds as the voice of Pokémon’s mascot.
The list of actors also considered for the role of Pikachu included Dwayne Johnson, Hugh Jackman, and even Danny DeVito. While it would have been exciting to see Jackman voice a detective in a Pokémon film, there is no denying that Reynolds’ performance was memorable.
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Billy Flynn – Chicago (2002)
In yet another musical film adaptation Hugh Jackman passed on, Rob Marshall’s 2002 masterpiece, Chicago, was set to have Jackman star as Billy Flynn. The film centered around the rivalry between Roxie Hart (Renée Zellweger) and Velma Kelly (Catherine Zeta-Jones) as they try to request help from Flynn (Richard Gere).
Jackman was offered the role of Flynn; however, he turned down the role because he believed he was too young for the role. The decision ended up being a regret of Jackman, who joked that makeup could have solved the age issue, as the film went on to win many accolades.
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Eric the Huntsman – Snow White and the Huntsman (2012)
Snow White and the Huntsman is a fantasy film released in 2012 that involves an alternative take on the classic German fairy tale. In this iteration, Snow White is imprisoned by her stepmother, who sends Eric the Huntsman after Snow White when she escapes her cell. While out to get her, Eric experiences a change of heart that leads to the duo of Eric and Snow in a rebellion against her mother.
Hugh Jackman was reportedly offered the role of Eric by Universal Pictures, but unknown issues caused Jackman to leave negotiations for the role. Like Jackman, actors such as Tom Hardy, Johnny Depp and Viggo Mortensen were offered the role but also declined. Chris Hemsworth went on to suit up as Eric the Huntsman, and the film went on to earn $396 million worldwide, beating the odds, and a sequel based on Eric’s origin story.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
