Joaquin Phoenix has spoken about his near involvement with the Marvel Cinematic Universe and revealed that he has no regrets about not signing up.
With the myriad movies now contained within the parameters of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, countless big name actors have inevitably found their way into featured roles.
One actor who nearly joined the ranks with so many of his colleagues is Joaquin Phoenix, who was in line to play Doctor Strange before the role ultimately went to Benedict Cumberbatch.
Phoenix isn’t remorseful about the not jumping onboard, however, revealing that he thinks things turned out well for everyone involved:
“I think they make some great, fun movies,” Phoenix told Little White Lies. “There’s nothing wrong… I’m not a fucking, like, cinephile. I’m not a snob and I’m totally fine with… I enjoy those movies sometimes, and I think they keep the fucking industry going in some ways, so I don’t have a problem with it at all. I think that everybody was, is… I’m trying to figure out how to say this most diplomatically, okay… I think everybody was really happy with how things turned out. All parties were satisfied.”
It’s certainly interesting to think how differently Doctor Strange would have turned out if Phoenix had taken the role. It doesn’t seem, however, that the actor is totally against the idea of signing up with Marvel in the future, so perhaps further opportunities await him.
Phoenix may have one comic book role in his immediate future, as he is reportedly the front runner to play The Joker in Warner Bros. and Todd Phillips’ origin movie for the Clown Prince of Crime, although he has recently played down the casting talk.