Josh Hartnett Says He Was Asked to Play Batman, Superman and Spider-Man

Josh Hartnett was interviewed in this month’s Details where he revealed that, at 22, he turned down roles for Superman in Superman Returns, Batman and Spider-Man. Hartnett knew that those blockbuster franchises would only end up typecasting him like they did George Clooney, Christian Bale, Andrew Garfield and, soon, Ben Affleck. Mm hmm. Sure, Josh Hartnett. *pats head*

DETAILS: You’re 35 now, but in your twenties, you got offered pretty much everything. You turned down Superman Returns, and you were in talks to play almost every other superhero.
Josh Hartnett: Spider-Man was something we talked about. Batman was another one. But I somehow knew those roles had potential to define me, and I didn’t want that. I didn’t want to be labeled as Superman for the rest of my career. I was maybe 22, but I saw the danger.

DETAILS: Your agents must have been slitting their wrists.
Josh Hartnett: I didn’t have those agents for much longer after that. There was a lot of infighting between my manager and agents, trying to figure out who to put the blame on. It got to the point where none of us were able to work together.

DETAILS: What would you say if Warner Bros. called you tomorrow and said, “Josh, we’d still love you to wear the cape. We’ve got a great new concept . . . “?
Josh Hartnett: I’d say, “Let’s talk about how it would be done, see if we can get on the same page.” Compromise doesn’t scare me anymore.

Riiight. Uh huh. Even if were true, the last things I remember Josh Hartnett in was Pearl Harbor and that movie where he held his jizz in for 40 days. I don’t think he’s getting a call back.

For the record, I refuse to believe any of this. Mostly because I can’t picture a superhero who looks like their half-asleep all the time.

Here’s the trailer for his new Showtime series Penny Dreadful which hopefully Eva Green gets naked in.