Jude Law reveals why he rejected Superman role

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Washington Bureau Chief

Jude Law has revealed he turned down the role of Superman in the early 2000s – even after trying on the suit.

Superman is one of the world’s best-loved superhero characters, and has been played by multiple actors, including Christopher Reeve and Henry Cavill.

Speaking on The Playlist’s “Discourse” podcast, Law recalled successfully auditioning for the role, but admitted that he felt wrong for the character, saying: “I always resisted it because it just felt off.”

The actor confirmed he was chosen to play the Man of Steel in Brett Ratner’s unsuccessful Superman project, which was announced in 2002 – and not even sampling the specially-made suit made him change his mind.

“They bought me the suit, I tried it on and looked in the mirror and part of me initially was like, ‘Wow, this would be a [good thing],’ and then I just thought, ‘No, you can’t – you can’t do this. You can’t’”.

Law continued: “I didn’t sell myself to myself. And I stepped away and the film never happened anyway. So maybe it probably wouldn’t have done anything.”

The actor wasn’t the only actor in the running to be Ratner’s Superman, Matt Bomer who recently appeared in Bradley Cooper’s Maestro, recently told The Hollywood Reporter that he was quite possibly the director’s final choice for the role.

Bomer believes the role got taken away from him after he came out as gay, stating: “That was a time in the industry when something like that could still be weaponized against you, that’s my understanding”.

Earlier this week, Law shared one of his career regrets, saying he wishes he didn’t “try to play against his looks” in his younger years now that, in his own words, he is “saggy and balding”.

Law’s other credits include The Talented Mr Ripley, in which he played Dickie Greenleaf, and Christmas film The Holiday.

He also played future Hogwarts headmaster Dumbledore in the Fantastic Beasts films, which is a prequel spin-off to Harry Potter.