Jason Statham has made a name for himself as an action star. The actor is known for playing rugged, hardboiled, and particularly aggressive characters. He started to gain fame with his movies directed by Guy Ritchie, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, and Snatch. But it wasn’t until he bagged the role in the first The Transporter movie in 2002 that he was able to become a household name as an action star.
His amazing physique and his training in Chinese martial arts, kickboxing, and karate are what helped him gain these roles. And with the Transporter franchise, he gained immense commercial success. But the actor decided to bid adieu to the role of Frank Martin in the reboot as the offer made by the production wasn’t good enough for him.
Jason Statham turned down the role in the Transporter reboot due to humiliating offer
After the original trilogy came to an end in 2008, the Frank Martin actor moved on to play major roles in many blockbusters. He joined the glistening cast of The Expendables franchise which stars some of the biggest action heroes Hollywood has ever seen, apart from that he joined the Fast & Furious franchise and many major successful films like The Bank Job. With his commercial and critical success, Jason Statham became one of the most bankable stars.
Becoming a part of the big league also increased his net worth and value, so when the Transporter’s makers offered the star a lower salary for three movies for the reboot in 2015, it surely was humiliating for him. The actor shed light on the same during an interview with Vulture.
“You know what? It was obviously a great experience doing those films, and I would have loved to keep doing it. But they wanted me to sign on and do three more films without even seeing a script, and they offered me less money to do three than I’d get paid for one! So it was a business decision. I would have loved to have done it, but you can’t really sign on without doing a script, and to sign on for three of them? And to get paid a pittance? I just couldn’t see the value in that.”
Despite the fact that he would have loved to come back as Frank Martin in the reboot, The Transporter Refueled, the makers were offering him very little money and demanded him to sign on without reading a script. But Statham was more experienced then and he passed on the role. It eventually went to Ed Skrein of Game of Thrones fame.
The connection between Tom Cruise’s Collateral and The Transporter franchise
Fans of both stars must’ve remembered spotting Jason Statham reprising his role as Frank Martin in the Tom Cruise movie. To refresh your memory, he was seen passing a bag to Cruise’s hitman character, Vincent, at the airport. He was credited as the airport man in the movie. Though it was just a fan theory initially, the screenwriter confirmed that both movies exist in the same universe.
The screenwriter of Collateral, Stuart Beattie confirmed the news in an interview. He stated,
“Absolutely Frank Martin of Transporter. I asked Jason about that… Yeah, absolutely. Yes, it’s canon. Same world… the studio will never admit to that, but in my head, absolutely it’s him.”
Though the news hyped the fans for a Frank Martin and Vincent crossover, Jason Statham turning down the role has crushed all hopes. At least for now. But if the makers come forward with a better offer for both the stars, it might just happen.
All of The Transporter movies starring Jason Statham are streaming on Netflix.
Source: Vulture
