Batwoman star Dougray Scott really hasn't had a lot of luck in Hollywood. His commitment to the mostly forgettable Mission: Impossible II means he was forced to pull out of playing Wolverine in X-Men, a role Hugh Jackman would ultimately use to become a household name. Now, though, he's revealed that the sequel also played a role in him turning down The Lord of the Rings.
In that, he was supposed to take on the role of Aragorn, a part that ultimately went to Viggo Mortensen in Peter Jackson's award-winning adaptations of J.R.R. Tolkien's novels.
"They sent [the script] to me," Scott explained. "They wanted me to go meet Peter Jackson in New Zealand, but to be honest with you I'd just finished doing MI:2 and the idea of spending two years away in New Zealand I just couldn't quite contemplate. I read it...I thought it was great, and I thought the movie was terrific. Like everyone else, everyone's agents were getting sent the script."
"They didn't offer it to me," he continued, "but they sent me the script to read for sure." Scott added that "Viggo was great," but Mortensen also nearly missed out on playing Aragorn. Originally, Stuart Townsend was cast, but Jackson decided he looked too young, and his replacement joined The Fellowship of the Ring just four days before shooting actually started.
While there's nothing to say Scott would have landed the role, you have to believe he has at least some regrets about deciding to star in the Mission: Impossible sequel alongside Tom Cruise!