Earlier this week, we sat down with Ryan Phillippe (I Know What You Did Last Summer, Shooter) to discuss his role in Vertical's new survival thriller Prey.
Way back in 2015, the actor revealed he'd met with Marvel Studios and, at the time, speculation ran rampant that they might have discussed him taking on the role of Danny Rand in Netflix's Iron Fist. Those of you who have been here a while will likely also remember that Phillippe was once a fan-favourite choice to play Captain America before the role went to Chris Evans.
During our conversation, we asked the actor what he met with Marvel Studios about and whether he's still angling for a superhero movie role.
"I don’t think I will be [in a superhero movie], ultimately. I don’t know. I enjoy those films at times but I don’t know if it’s a world I need to inhabit. I think it’s something I can enjoy as a fan," Phillippe says in the video below. "At one point, there was a discussion about meeting on Captain America and there was a discussion about Iron Fist."
"You never say no to something like that necessarily, but I don’t know, it didn’t work out. I tend to think that was maybe for a reason and maybe I wasn’t in the right place or it wasn’t the right place. I enjoy those as a fan but it doesn’t necessarily mean I need to be in them [Laughs]."
As for whether he has any regrets about missing out on starring as the MCU's Captain America or Iron Fist, Phillippe made it clear that it's not something he clings to all these years later.
"Going back to the spirituality of it all, I do think things happen for a reason. Who knows what has transpired in my life…the other thing is, things have changed drastically for me personally as a father. I have three children. That really takes a lot of your time, effort, and focus. And deservedly so."
"I’m a lot more free in regards to when something doesn’t work out," he continues. "I try to give them as much time as I possibly can, certainly when they were even younger, but I’m able to take things as they come and I harbour no disappointments for very long and I guess that’s a healthy thing."
It's a shame the whole superhero thing didn't pan out for Phillippe as there's a lot he could have brought to the table in that realm. Instead, he landed a lead role in Shooter, a role Ryan later agreed with us is more badass than many comic book characters.
Check back here later today for our full conversation about Prey or watch the interview now in the player above.
After an extremist militant group threatens their lives, a young couple (Ryan Phillippe and Mena Suvari) is forced to flee their Christian missionary post in the Kalahari Desert. After being granted passage aboard a rickety plane, piloted by a corrupt smuggler (Emile Hirsch), their escape to safety is nearly in reach. But when their aircraft loses power and crash lands, they discover a bigger threat awaits them as they find themselves stranded in the middle of an animal preserve populated by maneaters -- lions, leopards, and hyenas. Injured, frightened, and being tracked by the extremists, this ragtag group of passengers must fight for survival from both man and beast where only the strong will survive.
Prey arrives in theaters and on demand starting March 15.