Josh Hartnett has an extensive history of playing badass parts in major films. Take, for instance, his role as law enforcement officer turned vampire hunter, Eben Oleson, in ’30 Days of Night’, or Danny Walker in ‘Pearl Harbor’. But when Marvel came to him to ask him to put on the Spidey suit, he turned them down – and that wasn’t the only time. The actor told Playboy magazine that he’d been offered the roles of Spider-Man, Superman and Batman.
As amazing as it would be to see Josh Hartnett play Batman, he turned down every chance he had to play a superhero. According to the interview, the reasoning behind his decision to not work with the franchise was that he thought it would narrow down his future opportunities and put him in a box that he didn’t want to be in. Well maybe, but it also would have made him a boatload of money.
Jensen Ackles
'Supernatural' fans everywhere would be beside themselves if Jensen Ackles landed a part as a superhero in a Marvel film. He’s played the role of cocky, cute and deadly Dean Winchester for 14 years and he knows his action scenes, which is probably why producers invited him to audition for the role of 'Captain America'. The part went to Chris Evans, of course, but hey – a fangirl can dream, right?
Even though he missed out on the starring role, producers still wanted him to be a part of the movie and offered him the smaller part of the rebellious Hawkeye. But Jensen never ended up taking on any roles in the MCU at that point, due to his schedule for 'Supernatural'. Here’s to hoping that they offer him another role in a film now that 'Supernatural' is coming to an end.
Olivia Munn Has Zero Interest in Playing the Girlfriend
'Deadpool' is one of Marvel’s most hilarious and unique superhero movies, with terrific acting, laugh-out-loud moments and awesome action scenes – not to mention Ryan Reynolds. But, as much as any fangirl watching the film would’ve loved to play the snarky superhero’s girlfriend, Vanessa, Olivia Munn was less than excited about it.
Munn gave producers a big, fat “no,” citing that she was tired of playing the girlfriend and wanted something that gave her more action scenes. In 2016, the actress got what she was looking for when she landed the role of Psylocke in 'X-Men: Apocalypse'. The role of Vanessa ultimately went to Morena Baccarin, who was more than happy to take the part.
Alec Baldwin as a Bad Guy
Alec Baldwin is mostly known for his comedic roles, such as that of Jack Donaghy on '30 Rock', or his many stints on SNL. Of course, he’s done his fair share of serious roles, too – but never that of a supervillain, which is exactly what Marvel wanted from him when they offered him a part in one of their movies. Unfortunately, he had some family obligations going on at the time and had to decline.
So, Alec may have missed his first chance at becoming a part of the MCU, but rumor has it that he’s set to be in the new 'Black Widow' movie, starring ScarJo. Keep your eyes peeled for the trailers and your fingers crossed that he plays a sinister role, because that’s going to be super exciting to see from him.
The Hulk Role was up in the Air
Almost everyone in the United States who’s seen a Marvel movie most likely associates Mark Ruffalo with the Hulk, since he’s the one who plays him on the big screen. However, some may remember the time when Edward Norton played the not-so-jolly green giant. But things may have turned out very differently if producers had gone in another direction – which they had a few to choose from. A few celebrities were invited to audition, including 'X-Files' star David Duchovny.
Norton played the Hulk in the 2008 film but was replaced by Mark Ruffalo in 2010. In an interview after the recast, Norton said that one of the reasons they changed actors was because Ruffalo is a “team player.” Can you even picture the Hulk being played by anyone but Ruffalo these days?