14 Actors Who Passed on Iconic Roles (1 Missed Out on a $250 Million Payday & a Pop Icon Said No to Playing Catwoman!)

Josh Hartnett as Batman in Batman Begins

Josh Hartnett revealed that he’d been approached by Christopher Nolan to play Batman in Batman Begins, which kicked off the Dark Knight trilogy. He turned the offer down, and it went to Christian Bale.

Years later, he explained that he regretted the decision. “I learned my lesson when [writer-director] Christopher Nolan and I talked about Batman. I decided it wasn’t for me,” he told Playboy. “Then he didn’t want to put me in The Prestige. They not only hired their Batman for it, they also hired my girlfriend [Scarlett Johansson] at the time.

“That’s when I realized relationships were formed in the fire of that first Batman film and I should have been part of the relationship with this guy Nolan, who I felt was incredibly cool and very talented. I was so focused on not being pigeonholed and so scared of being considered only one thing as an actor. I should have thought, Well, then, work harder, man. Watching Christian Bale go on to do so many other things has been just awesome. I mean, he’s been able to overcome that. Why couldn’t I see that at the time?”

Last year, Christopher shared his side of the story.

Christina Applegate as Elle Woods in Legally Blonde

Before Reese Witherspoon was cast as Elle Woods in Legally Blonde, the role was offered to Christina Applegate. She wasn’t interested at the time.

“I wouldn’t toy with the idea of Legally Blonde because it felt too fresh getting out of Married…With Children,” she told Vanity Fair. “It was very similar on paper. I started to read it and I remember calling them and going, ‘Oh, it’s too similar. Can’t do it.’ Um, big f-cking mistake. I’d have Witherspoon money! No, just kidding. You can’t imagine anyone playing Elle Woods other than Reese Witherspoon. I would have completely screwed it up.”