Tom Hardy was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his villainous role in The Revenant. The film, which earned Leonardo DiCaprio his long-deserving Oscar, faced its share of production challenges, including funding issues at one point. During this time, Hardy was frustrated as he lost out on an interesting role in the DC ensemble film, Suicide Squad, due to a delay in The Revenant’s production.
The Revenant was far from a smooth ride for those involved. The cast and crew had to endure the chilling weather in Canada, rehearsing for six to eight hours and filming for one and a half hours. Many crew members either quit or were fired due to the demanding filming conditions.
Tom Hardy Was Frustrated About Losing His DC Movie Role
Filming for The Revenant began in October 2014, and the first schedule was wrapped up for a short two-week break. However, the production could not continue in Calgary, Canada due to a lack of snow, which disrupted the continuity of the sequence. The filming resumed six weeks later in Argentina and the delay in production forced Tom Hardy to drop out of his role in David Ayer’s film, Suicide Squad.
Hardy was set to portray the military officer, Rick Flag, who leads the Suicide Squad in their dangerous mission. The studio had already announced the final casting when the Legend actor informed them of his scheduling conflicts and reluctantly stepped away from the role. While his tough decision eventually led to an Oscar nomination, The Dark Knight Rises actor was still mad at losing the role. In an interview with Variety, Hardy shared his frustration:
“It punched right into that, yeah. That got derailed for me. Was I bummed? Of course I was. I hate f**king losing work. I kept bemoaning that they were losing me significant money on a daily basis. Actually, it was good for my character.”
After the Peaky Blinders actor left the project, the studio approached Jake Gyllenhaal, who had previously worked with Ayer in End of Watch. However, Gyllenhaal turned down the offer, and the studio eventually cast Joel Kinnaman in the role. The film faced criticism from some quarters but still became a huge commercial hit.
Tom Hardy Denied Rumors Of Punching The Revenant Director
The four-time Academy Award-winning director Alejandro G. Iñárritu was a difficult man to work with on set. The director was one of the main reasons that made the production so challenging with his extreme focus on the creative output. However, the Birdman director did manage to create an exceptional movie that effectively conveyed the harrowing experiences of the characters to the audience.
When asked about the firing of some crew members who had complained about the difficult filming conditions, Iñárritu responded to The Hollywood Reporter, “But as a director, if I identify a violin that is out of tune, I have to take that from the orchestra.” However, Tom Hardy revealed that he had a very fun relationship with the director and that they never disagreed on anything. Hardy also dismissed the rumors that he had punched the director, and shared with Variety:
“No. If you hit somebody, you’d know about it. That didn’t happen. That’s just nonsense.”
The Revenant is now available for rent on AppleTV+, while Suicide Squad is now available for streaming on Max.
