Now that the role of the suave British spy has become vacant again, speculation ran rampant about who would step into the legendary shoes of 007. Some of the notable stars of the industry have previously said no to the iconic James Bond including Hugh Jackman and the Batman star, Adam West.
And turns out that before Hugh Jackman declined the offer, West rejected the life-changing role for his nationality! However, when the opportunity again presented itself, many fans and industry insiders believed that Hugh Jackman, with his dashing good looks and undeniable talent, was the perfect candidate. But to everybody’s surprise, he too declined the role.
Adam West refused to be James Bond because of his nationality
Back in 1970, after Sean Connery, Adam West did not deem himself worthy to fill the shoes of the James Bond role. The success of the 60’s Batman TV show opened many new doors for the actor, thus, when it came to searching for people who can fill the spot, West’s name came into the executives’ heads. But unfortunately, the American at heart was busy at the moment, and further when thought about it concluded that it would be best suited for an “Englishman” to do it.
He revealed,
“Yes, I was asked about it. The Broccoli seniors said, ‘This is James Bond!’ And I said, ‘I’m sorry I can’t do it, I’m tied up with something else.’ Also I thought it should be an Englishman.”
He did not confess the fact until the last decade, to the media outlet DigitalSpy.
Why did Hugh Jackman Reject the Role of James Bond?
Similarly, in the TV series, The Program, The X-Men star, Hugh Jackman revealed that the DC franchise came in the way of him playing Bond. Just after he signed for the second installment of the popular franchise X-Men, the opportunity for him to play James Bond came about. Thus, he thought the timing of it all would not match if he took on the project then. It would have also been very difficult for him to star in both the successful franchises hand in hand. He said,
“At the time, I was just about to do X-Men 2, and I was like, ‘Ah, I don’t think it’s the right time,’ –I’d seriously consider it [now],”
Interestingly enough, Jackman was approached about playing James Bond as early as 2002, before the release of Pierce Brosnan’s last James Bond movie Die Another Day. Although it wasn’t until 2004 that Brosnan officially departed from the franchise, this might have been a sign that producers were already looking for potential replacements.
Batman: The Complete TV Series is available on Blu-ray now while X-Men 2 is available on the streaming platform Hulu.
Source: DigitalSpy
