When he had just finished filming X-Men, Hugh Jackman decided to try his luck at starring opposite Sandra Bullock in Miss Detective. But things did not go the way he wanted.
We are in the late 90’s. Hugh Jackman still wasn’t the interplanetary star he is today. At this time, the Australian actor had completed filming on X-Men, where he played the mutant Wolverine.
While waiting for the film to be released on all screens, Jackman continued auditioning. And it’s good, she recently got a nice role opposite Ashley Judd in the romcom Animal Attraction.
Her agent has an idea: cast her in a big production with Sandra Bullock. If he is cast in Miss Detective, he can use it as an argument to negotiate his contract on Ashley Judd’s film. But nothing ever goes according to plan, as the actor would recount a few years later Diversity,
When Hugh Jackman goes to audition he doesn’t expect to meet the lead actress. To find out if their relationship works well on screen, both actors have to pass a chemistry test (he has to play Inspector Eric Matthews, a police officer who falls under the spell of Gracie Hart).
But Jackman was immediately destabilized by his colleague:
“Hey, that’s great. So fast and efficient. I can’t follow him. I tried as much as I could but I didn’t know the script well. This was the first time I tested with another actor.”He reveals.
Ultimately, the producers preferred actor Benjamin Bratt. As for herself, she also continued filming Animal Attraction. “It’s insulting when you hear your agent say ‘I don’t want you to be in this movie, but try to get the role anyway’ and then you don’t get the role.”
Fortunately, this denial will not have any negative impact on Hugh Jackman’s career. The release of X-Men in 2000 brought them to the forefront of the international scene.
Miss Detective will leave Netflix on January 31.