Hugh Jackman is no doubt one of the best actors in Hollywood. Followed by his glory days in Australian cinema, Jackman started looking for opportunities in Hollywood and auditioned for Wolverine’s part in the 2000 film X-Men. Although not everyone was quite delighted with Jackman’s Wolverine initially, he made sure to work on the faults and do his best with every new X-Men film. Jackman also made sure that he was not typecast and continued exploring genres like comedy, romance, and drama along with others.
However, the Real Steel star rejected an offer to portray a character that many chased and the race for whom has started once again. During his interview with Variety, he shared that he was offered the role of James Bond, but he rejected it.
Hugh Jackman Rejected the Offer to Portray James Bond
As Daniel Craig concluded his venture with James Bond with the 2021 film, No Time To Die, many actors have joined the list to be the next James Bond for the future films under the franchise. However, when Hugh Jackman was offered the role after Pierce Brosnan, he refused to lead the future James Bond movies.
During his interview with Variety, he shared that he was offered the role of the MI6 agent. But when he read the script, it seemed “unbelievable and crazy” to him. The Prisoners star shared that he wanted the film to be “grittier and real.” However, when he shared his suggestion, he was told to follow what was provided to him.
“Oh, you don’t get a say. You just have to sign on,” Jackman shared the response he got. Despite being one of the biggest franchises, he rejected the offer after learning that he would not have a say in the story or the character he would be portraying. However, that was not the only reason Jackman rejected the offer.
The role was then offered to the English actor Daniel Craig, who made his debut as James Bond in the 2006 film Casino Royale. He continued playing the character for over a decade and concluded his tenure in 2021 with No Time To Die.
Hugh Jackman Didn’t Want to be Typecast
During his interview, Hugh Jackman also shared that he wanted to avoid being typecast for some specific characters. He explained how almost every other offer after portraying Wolverine in X-Men was similar to the “kind of hero part.”
He shared that he has always wanted to try different things. But after portraying Wolverine in the X-Men films, he noticed that the range of roles offered to him started to shrink. Jackman further explained “People wanted me to play that kind of hero part exclusively. It felt a little bit claustrophobic.”
And signing up for the James Bond franchise would have narrowed his chances to explore more genres as an actor. Daniel Craig, who portrayed the character from 2006 to 2021, also shared that he thought he would only star in a single James Bond film. However, he was soon notified that the franchise would continue with four more films, and at a point, the Skyfall star was done with the character.
“I said, ‘This is it. I don’t want to do anymore,” Craig shared in an interview. Hugh Jackman, on the other hand, continued following his passion for exploring more genres as he alternated between the big screen and broadway. He even won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his work in The Boy from Oz in 2004 and was honored with a Special Tony Award in 2012.
Source: Variety
