Most of you probably know Josh Hartnett turned down playing Superman in Bryan Singer's SUPERMAN RETURNS, but did you know the actor was also in talks to play Batman and Spider-Man, and turned both of those roles down as well? Hartnett revealed the news in a recent interview with Details for his new television series Penny Dreadful.
DETAILS: You're 35 now, but in your twenties, you got offered pretty much everything. You turned down Superman Returns, and you were in talks to play almost every other superhero.
Josh Hartnett: Spider-Man was something we talked about. Batman was another one. But I somehow knew those roles had potential to define me, and I didn't want that. I didn't want to be labeled as Superman for the rest of my career. I was maybe 22, but I saw the danger.
Hartnett goes on to say his agents weren't too happy with him.
I didn't have those agents for much longer after that. There was a lot of infighting between my manager and agents, trying to figure out who to put the blame on. It got to the point where none of us were able to work together.
Josh Hartnett also says now that he's older, he would consider playing Superman if Warner Bros. approached him.
I'd say, "Let's talk about how it would be done, see if we can get on the same page." Compromise doesn't scare me anymore.
Obviously Warner Bros. isn't going to bail on Henry Cavill, but I'm glad to see Josh Hartnett is a little more open to possibly appearing in a comic book movie.
I actually don't mind Josh Hartnett, however I don't think he would have been great in any of these roles. I still believe he would do an awesome job as a comic book character, but I just don't think Superman, Batman or Spider-Man would be a good fit for the actor.
How do you think Josh Hartnett should play in a comic book movie?
Josh Hartnett's Penny Dreadful will start airing on Showtime on May 11th, 2014, and the pilot episode is currently available on Youtube.