Paul Newman was one of the biggest stars in Hollywood in the 1960s and 1970s, which is why in 1978, he was offered the role of Superman by director Richard Donner. But Newman was a serious actor who had very little interest in putting on the costume that was required for the film. After all, the original Superman was basically the world’s first modern superhero movie, so no one was really used to seeing those kinds of movies yet.
After Newman turned down the lead role, execs pleaded with him to take part in the film. So, they offered up the role of Lex Luther, but he shot that down, too. Finally, he was offered the part of Superman’s father, Jor-El, but again, the answer was no. He was reportedly offered nearly $5 million to take on any of the parts, but it wasn’t enough to convince him.
Eliza Dushku as Black Widow
Eliza Dushku is pretty much known for playing the part of the gorgeous femme fatale. She had her breakout role as Faith, the bad girl on 'Buffy: The Vampire Slayer', and years later went on to play super spy Echo in Joss Whedon’s 'Dollhouse' – a role that she even learned some Russian for. But that didn’t make much of a difference to studio execs in charge of casting for the role of the Black Widow in Marvel’s 'Iron Man 2'.
When Dushku heard the role was available, she took to the Howard Stern Radio Show to throw her hat in the ring. She told the audience that she was perfect for the role and that they just needed to “get into it.” She’s not wrong – Eliza would’ve made a great Black Widow.
Will Smith Says “No” to Superman
Before Brandon Routh was cast as DC’s kryptonite-allergen having superhero in 'Man of Steel', 'Men in Black' star Will Smith was offered the part. But Smith shot the role down without giving it much consideration, citing that the reason he wouldn’t take it is that he was nervous about the prospect of ruining it, saying “you mess up white people's heroes and you won’t work in this town again.” He must have been having some flashbacks to all of the outrage he faced when he played James West.
There’s no reason for him to regret taking that role, considering how awful 'Man of Steel' turned out to be. No doubt things would have turned out a lot like he imagined when saying “no” in the first place. Of course, the movie still made plenty of money in theatres, bringing in nearly three times its budget.
Jon Hamm: The Green Lantern
The 2011 'Green Lantern' movie starring Ryan Reynolds pretty much bombed, both in theaters and among critics and general reviews. It has a whopping 29% on Rotten Tomatoes, and the general critic consensus is that the movie was poorly written and produced. And since critics mostly went after the writing and production, Jon Hamm, who was initially contacted for the starring role, couldn’t have done much to save it.
Hamm said in an interview that they “came after him pretty hard” for the role, but he turned it down because he isn’t a fan of superheroes. He made sure to add, "never say never", but that superhero movies just weren’t the type that he’s interested in. Hey, nothing wrong with that…although Jon Hamm would definitely make an awesome superhero. Let’s hope he reconsiders in the near future!
Kristen Stewart as Lois Lane
Kristen Stewart is apparently another lucky actress who dodged a bullet when she turned down the role of Lois Lane in the 'Man of Steel' film. Reports say that DC casting directors had their eye on the 'Twilight' star, but she had just wrapped filming for one franchise and didn’t want to jump into another one that quickly.
Around the same time, she was set to return to her role as Bella Swan in the teen vampire movies once again and was also preparing to star in the drama, 'On The Road', based on the novel by Jack Kerouac. She does seem to like acting in indie films, and those that give her the chance to show the audience sides of her they aren’t used to seeing from her time on 'Twilight'.