Back when Zack Snyder was casting for Superman in Man of Steel, Mad Men actor Jon Hamm (43) was rumored to be a strong contendor. Of course, the role ultimately went to Henry Cavill. But Hamm isn't losing any sleep over not landing the gig. At the height of the Mad Men actor's popularity, Hamm stated that he was offered his fair share of superhero roles but he's turned all of them down. Recently, Hamm told Radio Times, "The deals that they make you do [for superhero roles] are so draconian. And, of course, you are signed on for not only the movie that you are signed on for… but at least two more that you haven’t read and you have no idea what they are going to be and all the crossover ones you are going to have to do. For me to sign on now to do a superhero movie would mean I would be working until I am fifty as that particular superhero. It’s a lot of work at one thing which is not necessarily the reason I got into the business which is to do many things. If you want to spend all day pressing the same key that… seems an odd choice.”
However, with Mad Men ending next year, and Hamm presently without a leading role in a big summer blockbuster franchise, Hamm seems aware that his "studio-coveted" recognition factor may be waning. "[If] you don’t wear a cape and tights for a living, you literally have a hard time making an impression. Ask anyone under the age of twenty if they have heard of me and they will go ‘no, that guy looks like my dad."