Hugh Jackman has been an iconic actor ever since he made his debut in Hollywood all those years ago. The world knows him as Wolverine in the Fox-verse and in the upcoming MCU but Jackman has also done several other notable movies.

Starring in movies like Les Miserables, The Greatest Showman, and, The Prestige, Hugh Jackman has quite a fan following around the world. The actor could have added one more iconic role to his plethora but he rejected the idea. The role then eventually went to veteran actor Tom Hanks and the film spawned a franchise that is now notoriously famous in the world,

Hugh Jackman Rejected a 2006 Film That Shook The World

Imagine a man running in a Harris-Tweed jacket with a cylindrical cryptic device in his hand. An immediate scene of Tom Hanks running in his iconic character of Robert Langdon comes to mind. Well, the 2006 film, titled The Da Vinci Code, based on Dan Brown’s book of the same name, shook the world that year.
Hugh Jackman as Peter Allen in a still from his jukebox musical, The Boy From Oz
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With such a controversial theme and backdrop of the story, the movie was hailed as a masterpiece and also booed for its religious themes but fans loved Tom Hanks in it. Well, there could have been a very real possibility that the man running in the Harris-Tweed jacket could have been Hugh Jackman if he hadn’t denied the opportunity.

As per a report by ScreenRant, the role of the iconic Harvard symbologist was offered to Hugh Jackman after Bill Paxton refused the role. Due to alleged scheduling conflicts, the actor was not able to agree to do the film, and Tom Hanks was later roped into The Da Vinci Code. Although the film had quite a controversial theme to handle, the film was so successful that it spawned a franchise starring Tom Hanks in the lead role.

Hugh Jackman Lost Quite a Lot of Money To Tom Hanks

Tom Hanks in The Da Vinci Code (2006)
After Tom Hanks found the role of Robert Langdon, he did not want to let go. With the 2006 movie finding massive success, director Ron Howard immediately went to work on adapting the second book (technically the first book) of Dan Brown, Angels & Demons.

As per the reports, Tom Hanks earned a whopping $18 million for his portrayal of Robert Langdon in The Da Vinci Code. Increasing his price further, Hanks received $25 million for Angels & Demons in 2009 and then another $25 million for Inferno. All in all, Hanks earned a little over $68 million for appearing in the role of Professor Robert Langdon. This money could have been Hugh Jackman’s if he hadn’t rejected the role but fans are glad that Tom Hanks was cast in the movie.

The iconic 2006 thriller starring Tom Hanks in a Harris-Tweed jacket is available to stream on AMC+ Apple TV in the U.S.