Hugh Jackman Reveals Why He Turned Down A Role In 'Cats'

Hugh Jackman was in the early stages of taking on another hairy role for the movie "Cats," but ultimately he turned it down. Here's why.

After being asked in an interview with The Daily Beast if the actor, known for his notable portrayal of Wolverine in the "X-Men" movies, refused a role in the Broadway musical turned Hollywood film, he candidly answered, "Umm... yep."

The 51-year-old actor explained that he had a chat with the movie's director, Tom Hooper, and that he had a few choices in terms of the character he would have portrayed.

"Tom rang me early on because we did 'Les Mis' together, and there were a couple of options there based on availability and time, and I really...yeah, I just wasn’t available at the time," he cryptically explained.

"Cats" was a highly anticipated film for the 2019 holiday season but it ended up being a huge box office disappointment bringing in less money than it took to make. It only grossed around $74 million worldwide compared to its nearly $100 million budget. The film was also critically panned for a series of botched visual effects.

Even though the movie was considered a flop, Jackman isn't necessarily jumping for joy at the missed opportunity.

"I’m in the theater, man, and I don’t want to be in the business of bashing people -- or jumping on bandwagons," he said.

They say if you don't have anything nice to say don't say anything at all and that's the route Jackman seems to be taking in regards to "Cats," but it also helps that he hasn't actually seen the movie yet. Still, the actor praised the film's director.

"Tom Hooper’s one of the great filmmakers we have," he affirmed.