It may be hard for many of you to believe now, but in 2009, there was a lot of excitement surrounding X-Men Origins: Wolverine. For starters, the clawed mutant's first solo movie boasted an all-star cast and promised to adapt—and expand—the admittedly controversial Origins comic book.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine was also meant to be the first of several character-focused spin-offs, with Magneto, Deadpool, and Gambit all tentatively lined up for movies released under that banner (which, in the end, was only used once).
Gambit was, of course, played by Friday Night Lights star Taylor Kitsch. However, that wasn't always the plan, as Lost star Josh Holloway has now confirmed that he was gearing up to play Remy LeBeau before receiving a crushing phone call.
"Well, Gambit was one. As a matter of fact, I read with Hugh Jackman and got the part," the actor said at Fan Expo Portland (via Collider). "They hugged me, said, 'You're it! I'll see you on set.'"
"By the end of that evening, the studio head had called and said, 'We want someone 10 years younger.' So they got Taylor Kitsch," Holloway continued. "Which, I wonder if he could come back? Who knows, but thank you. I learned the card tricks and everything."
In the 2000s, Holloway was an immensely popular fan cast for multiple comic book movie roles, including Gambit. Kitsch's interpretation of the mutant didn't leave much of a mark, but in many ways, the Lost alum had a lucky escape.
Not only was X-Men Origins: Wolverine a critical flop (37%) on Rotten Tomatoes, but it was a box office disappointment, grossing only $373 million worldwide. Despite that, two loosely connected sequels, The Wolverine and Logan, eventually followed and found greater success.
If you were a ComicBookMovie.com reader at the time, you'll likely recall that the prequel had an interesting journey. An early, unfinished cut of X-Men Origins: Wolverine leaked online in its entirety before the movie's release, and it had multiple post-credits scenes, one of which confirmed that Wade Wilson had survived being decapitated (later accepted as the "main" stinger).
Deadpool was ultimately redeemed, and Hugh Jackman is still playing Wolverine. Both he and Ryan Reynolds are expected to appear in Avengers: Doomsday this December, while Gambit is now being played by Channing Tatum. He replaced Kitsch in the mid-2010s, but never got the opportunity to headline a planned solo outing before the Disney/Fox merger.
Do you think Holloway would have been a good choice for Gambit?