The iconic role Clint Eastwood turned down

When asked to think of Hollywood icons, Clint Eastwood may be one of the first people to spring to mind, with decades of landmark roles under his belt as swashbuckling cowboys, killers and detectives that have captured global audiences.

The actor has dipped his toes into all corners of cinema, with leading roles in crime thrillers such as Dirty Harry, moving romantic dramas like The Bridges of Madison County and titular Western films like A Fistful of Dollars and The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.

In recent years, we’ve seen many talented Hollywood stars become swept up in the world of Marvel films and comic-book adaptations, with some actors expressing dislike towards superhero stories and the credibility of this genre. But for Clint Eastwood, this was something he managed to avoid despite being offered an iconic role in one of these films.

Eastwood has always been very particular about his creative choices, with the actor playing Harry Callahan yet turning down the offer to play James Bond, despite the similarities between both parts. It shows careful consideration from the actor in selecting the right projects, only choosing to be a part of movies he truly believes in, which is a level of integrity we don’t see from everyone in show business.

Turning down the chance to play James Bond may seem like a bitter pill to swallow, but there was another role that the actor also walked away from, knowing that someone else was likely better for the part.

Superman is one of the most beloved superheroes of all time, with the story of Clark Kent and his alter-ego becoming a tale as old as time. Christopher Reeves famously reprised this role in Richard Donner’s adaptation of the story in 1978, with Gene Hackman playing the notorious villain Lex Luthor.

While the film has seen many different iterations over the years, this version is one of the most influential within the comic-book canon. While Reeves seems like the perfect choice to play this character, Eastwood revealed that he was considered for the part, saying, “This was when they first started to think about making it. I was like, ‘Superman? Nah, nah, that’s not for me’. Not that there’s anything wrong with it. It’s for somebody, but not me”.

It isn’t difficult to understand the instinct. Eastwood had made his name playing heroes whose appeal depended on them being slightly difficult to call heroic in the first place, from the Man with No Name to Harry Callahan. Superman required something much more earnest, an essentially decent man whose morality was never seriously in doubt.

Putting Eastwood inside the cape might have been fascinating, but audiences would probably have spent half the movie waiting for Clark Kent to lose patience and start asking questions with a .44 Magnum.

The picture didn’t suffer without Eastwood’s star power, though. It smashed box offices across the globe and amassed a whopping $300million through the gate, catapulting Christopher Reeve into stardom along with it.

Despite the fact that many fans would surely love to see Eastwood as this character, the actor was busy shooting The Gauntlet and Every Which Way But Loose at the time, also beginning his career as director after Play Misty For Me in 1971. Since then, he has forged an equally successful career behind the camera, helming the 2004 sports drama Million Dollar Baby and recently Juror #2, starring Nicholas Hoult.

That growing interest in directing makes the refusal even easier to understand. Eastwood was gradually reaching the point where simply being handed somebody else’s enormous franchise wasn’t necessarily the pinnacle of his ambitions, especially when his own films offered considerably more control over what appeared on screen.

The Marvel-esque addition to his filmography might have been welcomed by many, and he would no doubt put his own brooding twist on the character. But perhaps his commitment to specific genres and expanding his knowledge of the medium by staying on his metaphorical turf is how he’s been able to create such a powerful presence in the industry, preferring to stick to something he knows he’s truly committed to.