During an interview with The Daily Beast, Oscar nominee Hugh Jackman revealed that he turned down a role in Cats after Les Misérables director Tom Hooper contacted him during pre-production to discuss roles Jackman might be able to play. The actor reportedly turned down the movie simply because of scheduling issues: “There were a couple of options there based on availability and time, but I just wasn’t available at the time.”
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Cats ultimately bombed at the box office, earning $69.9 million from a $95 million budget. The outlet asked Jackman if he thought it was better he had turned down a role in Cats, but the actor declined to answer, saying, “I don’t want to be in the business of bashing people–or jumping on bandwagons. I haven’t seen it, and Tom Hooper’s one of the great filmmakers we have.”
Additionally, Jackman revealed that he has made peace with any future plans Marvel Studios may have to reboot Wolverine on the big screen after Disney acquired FOX.
“I knew it was the right time for me to leave the party—not just for me, but for the character. Somebody else will pick it up and run with it. It’s too good of a character not to. It’s kind of like, you’re on your way home and your friend rings you and goes, ‘Oh, dude, a new DJ just came on and the music is awesome, are you going to come back?’ And you say, ‘Sounds good but…no.’ They’re fine with someone else,” said Jackman.
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Jackman will next star in HBO’s Bad Education, director Cory Finley’s upcoming comedy-drama film alongside Academy Award winner Allison Janney (I, Tonya). Inspired by true events, the movie will debut on Saturday, April 25.
